RWBY: The Reapers
by IceBite
Summary: 2 Squads of soldiers trying to fight the Reapers while the Crucible is constructed encounter a Prothean Artifact that propels them through space and time, and they appear on the world of Remnant. Initially worried about getting back to their universe, their worries change when new threats come, led by Purge, one of the Reapers...
1. Teaser Trailer

**I'm actually beginning to plan my own fanfic (unrelated to a mega crossover series I have going on, or stuff I have on fanon wikis). Here's a teaser trailer for it, the first chapter will be written as soon as possible. Until then, feel free to leave a review of the trailer, and what you'd like to see of the fanfic.**

Teaser Trailer

_For eons, the organic races have theorized the existence of alternative parallel universes: universes where events have not gone as they had here, or have even not caught up with the others yet. Long have these seemed to be the unintelligent assumptions of the organic races._

_However…these assumptions have been proven correct…_

16 individuals, specifically Teams RWBY and JNPR, with 2 other teams of 4 individuals: Team REPR (pronounced as "Reaper"), consisting of an Awakened Collector Adept (self-assigned designation "Retribution", nicknamed by allies "Retty"), a Geth Infiltrator (assigned designation "Enigma"), an N7 Paladin Sentinel (named Pierson Chancellor), and a Krogan Battlemaster Vanguard (named Wraksan Rukar); and Team CTDL (pronounced as "Citadel"), consisting of a Geth Juggernaut Solder (assigned designation "Centurion"), an N7 Demolisher Engineer (named Tiara Roger) , a Batarian Slasher Adept (named Drosk Dosnahal) , and a Quarian Infiltrator (named Lunn'Faanar vas Vera).

_Now, in this new world, the organic hordes have bunkered down, and, with the organics of this world, they try to stall our might._

Both teams look out in the clearing in Emerald Forest, and see a large army of Husks, Marauders, and other Reaper Creatures, including what appear to be Reaper-ized Grimm.

_They should know that resistance to our advance is futile._

Ruby lunges onto a Brute, hooking Crescent Rose to its neck, and before the Reaper Soldier has time to react, Ruby beheads it, leaping backwards, as Yang fights a Cannibal, blast it in the face with her gauntlets. Weiss challenges a Marauder, and Blake takes on a trio of Husks. Nora and Len take on a Ravager, while Jaune and Pyrrha try to engage a Banshee. The Banshee knocks down Jaune, but the creature is attacked by Rukar, before it could kill Jaune. Joined by Centurion, Rukar fights the Banshee, while Enigma and Lunn engage a group of Husks charging the 4 teams' high ground.

_The inhabitants in this world, except for the ones identified as "Grimm", are immune to indoctrination, but their bodies, when killed, still make excellent soldiers. And these Grimm…_

Ruby and Retribution are fighting a squad of Cannibals, but are forced to duck to avoid a Reaper-ized Nevermore that tried to grab them. The Reaper-ized Grimm perches above the fight, ready to attack at a moment's notice. Ruby and Retribution are joined by Pierson and Tiara, and they move to hold off a squad of Collector Troopers that arrive.

_This world will fall to the Reapers, all resistance crushed. They will succumb…_

The group manages to take out the first wave of the Reaper Forces, but more Reaper Creatures and Collectors appear from the tree-line, and, in the distance, a massive, metallic squid-like form lands, facing the group.

_…Or they will be eradicated…_

**_RWBY: The Reapers_**


	2. Chapter 1 - Priority: Ontarom

**Ok, looks like my idea was more popular than anticipated. Therefore, here's chapter 1…more of a prologue really, but it is important to explain how to explain how they get to Remnant and what they were doing beforehand…**

**Furthermore, I will add additional powers to the "base powers" of each class. However, I will be limiting the additional powers, mainly to powers that either are appropriate for the individual, or are powers used by members of the same race. Also, some of the powers will be changed from their game-based counterparts, such as powers creating support units or structures no longer limited to just one such device (although they'd require time to set up the additional devices in the first place).**

**Now, to the story…**

**Priority: Ontarom**

* * *

Ontarom. A planet whose moon is in a decaying orbit, but its relatively pleasant environment resulting in it being colonized by humanity and becoming one of the Citadel's major communications hubs.

So, it came to no surprise when the planet was targeted by the Reapers and the Collectors.

The Allied Forces, recently reinforced with the arrival of the Geth and Quarians, sent 5 4-man squads to reinforce the planet's security forces, as the Reaper forces readied to attack. The teams made it to their destination, a facility code-named "Firebase Dagger", during a sandstorm, before the Reapers got there, allowing the group to fortify their position.

As the squads prepared for battle, they conversed, trying to keep their nerves in check, while waiting for the signal that the enemy was attacking. One of them, an N7 Paladin who'd escaped Earth with the Fifth Fleet, named Pierson Chancellor, conversed with another fellow N7, a Demolisher named Tiara Roger, as Tiara set up Supply Pylons at strategic points on the battlefield.

"I still can't believe we got this far: first, Commander Shepard manages to bring the Krogan into the fight, then she manages to strike a deal with the Rachni, then she finds that "Leviathan" creature who agreed to help us, and, to top it all off, she brokers a truce between the Geth and the Quarians, bringing THEM in to help, I can't help but feel we might stand a chance," Pierson said in a mildly optimistic tone.

Tiara, however, was a little more pessimistic. "Yeah, so? If what half of what Shepard said was true, and that Prothean she discovered was really saying how things happened, how do you know we won't end up like past civilizations? Who's to say one cycle before didn't include all of the races uniting against the Reapers, only to fail? Not to mention that, even if we DO win, Leviathan might become a problem…"

"We got them building the Crucible, and with the Geth and Quarian's BOTH helping with that, we should be finished soon. We don't have to kill all the Reapers: just hold the line until they finish."

"'Hold the line?" What, you've been hanging with that Salarian Engineer?"

Pierson just shrugged at that, while Tiara continued setting up Pylons.

Suddenly, a tall, towering figure came in. It was another member of Pierson's squad, but his arrival had him and Tiara briefly go for their guns, before seeing who it was. Some of the Collectors, twisted Protheans who were now servants of the Reapers, were released from Reaper control by the Leviathan, Creators of the Reapers, and began fighting alongside the galaxies' races. While some became like their Prothean ancestors, others became completely without personality, imprinting on the current galaxy. Others still, like the one they faced now, were a mix between the 2, possessing memories, and some abilities, of their Prothean ancestors, but are likely to gain personalities similar to the younger races.

The Awakened Collector then said to the duo, "The Reaper Forces draw near. I hope you both are prepared."

Pierson replied, "Good to know, Retty, we'll finish up here and meet up with you guys at the entrance to the facility."

"You know very well my chosen name was "Retribution", a word from your language meaning punishment that is considered deserved by the punished," Retribution sternly reminded Pierson.

"Yeah, but it's also quite long," Pierson playfully jabbed.

If Retribution's eyes were more than solidly-colored orbs, he would have rolled them at that remark, but there was no time to argue. "Move quickly! They will be here soon!" Retribution said again, before leaving, drawing his Assault Rifle as he did so.

"Alright, alright. You might want to get back to your team too, Tiara," Pierson said.

"Right, just gotta finish this Pylon, then I'm there!" With that, Pierson ran off to rejoin his squad.

* * *

At one entrance of the facility, Retribution and Pierson meet up with 2 other individuals; a Geth Infiltrator, under the designation "Enigma", and a Krogan Battlemaster, Rukar of Clan Wraksan. Enigma was readying "his" modded Javelin Rifle, while Rukar cradled his M-300 Claymore. The quartet watched as the enemies began to gather.

Enigma climbed up to a higher location, before looking in "his" rifle's Enhanced Scope, at the enemy forces. "Enemy force consisting predominantly of Husk and Cannibal type Platforms. Numerous Marauder-class Platforms present as squad leaders. Alert: Enemy Banshee, Ravager, and Brute type Platforms detected in enemy force. Proceed with caution."

"Good work, Synthetic, at least we know the initial force consists of standard Reaper Forces," Retribution called up to Enigma. One of the traits Retribution picked up to his malleable psyche was a decreased animosity towards synthetics, in comparison to typical Protheans and Awakened Collectors.

Pierson then reminded Retribution, "Remember, they've reportedly been sending Collectors this way…if you think you won't be able to fight them-"

"To kill them as they are now would be a blessing, human, don't worry about me: it would be same as me worrying over how you felt killing Husks."

"Good point," Pierson replied.

"Alright, let's see how they can handle us!" Rukar blurted out.

"Keep steady: we'll wait for them to get closer, then engage," Retribution commented.

Enigma then pointed out, "It might be advantageous if I were to pick off some of their forces as they come. This will limit the enemy forces you will need to deal with."

"Acknowledged, Synthetic. Now, let's get ready."

* * *

Tiara returned to her team, who were also setting up for when the enemy reached them. "'Bout time you got here, was about to think we'd have to send Lunn in to find you," said Drosk Dosnahal, a Batarian Slasher that was with the group.

"Whatever, was setting up the Pylons so we'd stay supplied in the fight. Lunn, how're things up there? What are they throwing at us?!"

The team's infiltrator, a Quarian by the name of Lunn'Faanar vas Vera, called up from his perch, "We got a whole mess of Reaper Troops of all types, mainly Husks and Cannibals. Looks like they don't have any Harvesters though, so that's a relief. Though, I'd suggest taking down the Banshees, Ravagers, and Brutes first, though."

"Good to know," Tiara replied.

"Deploying turret: we must be ready to hold them off when they arrive. We must hold this facility to prevent communications disruption," the squad's Geth Juggernaut, Centurion, said.

"Agreed," said Tiara.

* * *

It wasn't long before the Reaper forces began their attack on the facility, with team 1 (Retribution, Enigma, Pierson, and Rukar) and team 2 (Centurion, Tiara, Drosk, and Lunn) successfully holding their entry points. However word reached them that teams 4 and 5 were decimated, no survivors, and team 3 was pushed back, forcing teams 1 and 2 to fall back to team 3's positon. There, team 3's leader, a Turian Havoc by the name of Maxivius Sylmus, discussed the situation with Retribution and Centurion.

"They overwhelmed the other teams, and would have done so for us, had we not fallen back," Maxivius explained, "Fortunately, we made it out, but we don't have much time before they attack again."

Centurion analyzed the situation, and commented, "There is very little room to maneuver, and we will require breaking through the facility's doors to retreat further. If we can hold out while our infiltrators break the locks on the doors, we could potentially fall back."

"Agreed," Retribution said.

Maxivius then said, "I'll set up my team to be ready to hold them off, you guys try to get through that door."

"Acknowledged," Centurion responded.

* * *

The individuals returned to their teams and distributed their orders. Teams 1 and 2 recovered their reserve weapons from nearby storage containers, anticipating the needed firepower. It was soon after that the enemy arrived. However, this time, it was…

"Collectors! Watch out!" one of Maxivius's squad mates called out.

Back at one of the doors, while Lunn and Enigma fiddled with the locking mechanism, Rukar heard the yell. "Collectors…you might be able to "free" some of your people, after all," he said to Retribution, who merely nodded in response. The team readied for the Collectors that would come in, by getting under cover. As the sounds of gunfire got closer, the lockpicking team reported that it'd take a couple more minutes to finish. As they reported that, team 3 fell back into that room, followed shortly after by several Collector Troopers and Husks.

The group opened fire, taking down many of the Husks quickly. However, a few Collectors reached their cover, Retribution engaging them with his SMG. One fell quickly, while another was sucker punched by Centurion, before the Juggernaut begins pouring into the enemy reinforcements with his Spitfire.

A few grenades flew out, courtesy of Tiara, and took out a small group of Husks, while Rukar came and crushed a Collector Trooper unlucky enough to get near him. A couple Husks got by and tried to rush Enigma and Lunn, but Pierson managed to catch them, getting in front of them and shield-bashing them, stunning them while Drosk latched onto one of them, and lashed it into the other.

The fight continued as such, until, finally, Enigma announced, "The door is opening. Prepare to retreat further into the facility!" At this, the other members of the group retreated into the tunnel on the other side of the door, Tiara caving in the tunnel behind them, to slow the enemy down.

* * *

The 3 teams moved deeper into the tunnels, moving further away from the Reaper and Collector forces, in an attempt to put as much distance between them and the enemy as possible, so they could potentially have time to fortify the position. As they moved deeper, it began to dawn on them how far down the caves seemed to go.

"Where did these tunnels come from? I don't remember them being mentioned in the schematics for the facility," Tiara commented.

Pierson replied, "Probably something someone wanted to hide."

"This is indeed a possibility; organics typically, when in a position of power, will hide information that they believe will gain them more power," Enigma pointed out.

"Well…let's find out what they're hiding then," Rukar enthusiastically said.

Retribution commented, "We must not get distracted: we have to concentrate on pushing out the Reapers and Collectors."

"Maybe whatever's being hidden down here can help," Drosk suggested.

"Whatever it is, I see a chamber up ahead. Let's figure out what in it," Tiara said out loud. The group continued forward into the chamber, and discovered a machine. "What is THAT?"

"I have no idea…" Maxivius replied, "But it definitely looks-"

"Prothean…" Retribution said, recognizing the design. The group approached the device, Retribution closer than the others. However, a loud chattering could be heard behind them.

"The enemy units have managed to bypass Engineer Roger's makeshift barricade. Estimated 25 seconds before they enter the chamber!" Centurion said out loud.

"Everyone, positions!" Maxivius called. The entire group of 3 teams set up positions in the chamber, and prepared for the enemy to enter.

Finally, the estimated 25 seconds after the announcement, the enemy came in, a wall of Collector Troopers and Cannibals flooded into the chamber. The teams opened fire, the Geth Turrets and the teams' combat drones also engaging the enemies. The first wave of enemies fell, but another wave came in. Then another…Then another…Then another…

As the enemy forces poured in, they gained more and more ground, eventually, they were pushed back to the Prothean device, and Maxivius's squad started taking casualties. "There's too many of them!" one of his squad, a Human Infiltrator, shouted, before being cut down by a Ravager's attack. Another of his team, a Vorcha Sentinel, was charged by a Brute and crushed.

Soon, team 3 was reduced to 2 individuals: an Asari Vanguard and Maxivius, but they soon were also hit, blown backwards by another Ravager's attack.

"Damn it!" Pierson shouted, "we're getting slaughtered!"

A Reaper Banshee soon entered the chamber, and Retribution was soon smashed by a Biotic attack, knocking him backwards into the Prothean artifact.

Suddenly, upon Retribution making contact with the device, it began to activate and glow. The glow soon grew into a bright light, which soon engulfed the entire room. After a few seconds, the glow died down, and teams 1 and 2, as well as the bodies of Maxivius and the Asari were gone.

* * *

Admiral Hackett stood in front of a group of military leaders from the other races: a Turian General, an Asari Admiral, a Salarian Admiral and an STG officer, a Batarian Admiral, a Volus Admiral, a Krogan Warlord, Zaal'Koris vas Qwib-Qwib of the Quarians, and a Geth Prime. The group was reviewing the events of one of the most recent battles of the war. "Our forces sent to Ontarom had disappeared, but the reinforcements we sent managed to clear the facility of hostile units."

"What happened to the team sent there prior?" the Batarian asked.

"We discovered the corpses of 2 of the teams within the facility's entrance. We believe they tried to hold the entrances, but failed. Furthermore, both squads managed to uncover a hidden tunnel system under the facility."

The Turian then asked, "What did you find inside?"

"The team sent into the tunnels followed the trail left by the surviving teams, and they found a hidden chamber, where they found a hidden device, theoretically Prothean in nature."

"Excuse me, Admiral, but, did you say "Prothean"?" the Asari asked.

Hackett responded, "Indeed I did. We don't know what it does, only that it matches known Prothean technological style. We discovered 2 of the troops from one of the teams in the room, but the remaining 2 soldiers, as well as the other 2 squads, are currently MIA."

"Ok, first the teams discover a Prothean artifact, and then they just…disappear?" Admiral Koris questions, "If it is responsible, where did they go?"

"We do not know at this time, however, we are searching," Hackett replies.

The room is silent for a moment, while the information is taken in. Finally, the Krogan speaks up. "So…what's the next course of action?"

"I overheard that Shepard is being contacted by the Asari Councilor, supposedly for a mission to Thessia. In the meantime, we need to continue deploying teams to stop the Reapers and Cerberus before they take over the galaxy."

After the meeting, Admiral Hackett looked out over the fleet, consisting of ships from across the galaxy, with the Crucible in the distance. However, he began to wonder where the missing soldiers are. The last thing they needed was for soldiers to mysteriously beginning to disappear. Before returning to the task at hand, he hoped that this would be an isolated incident, and that they'd eventually find the missing troops…hopefully alive…

* * *

**Ok, here's the first chapter. I hope that it is alright. The RWBY-related content appears next chapter, and if this chapter is well-received, I hope the next chapter will be too…I'll do my best to try to release the next chapter by next Monday, hopefully sooner.**

**Furthermore, I've been debating whether to have the Asari Vanguard mentioned earlier survive or not. If there is enough support for her becoming a character, I might just do it, and if you have a suggestion as to where she'd fit in, the better. I've got basic ideas now, but if I see something I like better suggested, I might just do it…**

**EDIT: Furthermore, due to future plans, the name of Vepius Callius (the Turian Havoc) has been changed to Maxivius Sylmus.**


	3. Chapter 2 - Priority: Vale I

**Hey there, time for Chapter 2 to come about. As you could see in Chapter 1, I'll be using the "Priority: Setting Name" scheme for naming chapters, similar to the "story missions" of Mass Effect 3.**

**Furthermore, I know what I'm doing for the Asari now, but…well…let's just say that'll have to wait…**

**As you will see, these events start during the events of the episode "Ruby Rose". That's right: this crossover starts off at the very beginning of RWBY.**

**Priority: Vale I**

* * *

As Retribution awoke, he felt pain jolt through is body. 'Of course I'd be in pain: I just got slammed into some large metal device,' he thought, trying to rationalize the pain he felt. That was one disadvantage of being under his own control again…he was susceptible to pain again. Regardless, he picked himself up off the ground, and reviewed his surroundings. He was in a forest, in some kind of clearing. He searched around him, and discovered his weapons (a Prothean Particle Rifle, a Collector SMG, and an M-77 Paladin) to all be in one piece, as well as the container holding his reserve weapons (a Collector Sniper Rifle and Collector Assault Rifle) all intact. The Collector then checked the Omni-Tool it had obtained, in order to easily operate within Citadel Space. He found the device inactive, but, after a few moments, he was able to reactivate it. However, while multiple checks indicated the device was still functioning fully, it didn't have information on where they were.

The Collector gathered its weapons, and, once again thankful for the fact that the container was designed to be carried similar to a back pack, started his trek to find civilization. It was nearly dark, so the tell-tale lights of a city made finding civilization an easy task. However, as he neared the city, he heard a mechanical whirring and, reacting, quickly drew his Collector SMG and pointed it in the direction of the whirring. A few moments later, and…

"Collector Retribution, it is good to see you are still functioning." The telltale black plating and red flashlight eye of a Geth Hunter appeared. Retribution could immediately identify it as Enigma.

"So, you arrived here as well, Synthetic," Retribution commented. He looked his comrade over: it appeared Enigma managed to snag his own weapons: his Javelin Rifle, Pulse Rifle, Plasma Shotgun, Plasma SMG, and M-11 Suppressor were all compacted and in his possession.

"Indeed. We should keep moving. If the others made it here as well, it would be very likely that they made their way to the city that is in the distance," Enigma explained, marking something on his Omni-Tool's map.

Retribution questioned, "You know where we are? My Omni-Tool is not indicating where we are in the galaxy."

"No. However, I managed to make a brief scan of the surrounding area. I could not detect our comrades, however; their Omni-Tools might be offline or damaged," Enigma explained.

Retribution nodded, "Yes, mine was offline when I awoke, meaning theirs might be offline as well."

"Then we must get moving: if they detect this city here, that may be where they go first," Enigma suggested, already moving to approach the city.

"Agreed," Retribution decided, pulling up alongside Enigma.

* * *

Pierson felt a throbbing pain in his gut, as though his insides were pulled outside, and then stuffed back inside, inside-out. It took him a moment to settle his stomach, and a while longer to get his bearings. He was in some kind of forest, in a clearing. He looked around and found his weapons scattered around the clearing, his Eagle the only weapon actually on his person.

However, he soon heard some snarling. He turned, seeing a large, black creature, vaguely resembling a mythological werewolf, with a white skull-like plate on its head, with red markings on it, and white spikes coming out of its body. The creature approached him and snarled. Immediately, Pierson rolled to his feet, trying to find out if he could get to his weapons, and determining he couldn't, not before this beast got to him first. Fortunately, his Omni-Shield still worked, and he activated it, just in time to block the creature as it lunged at him. The attack didn't reach him, but he was knocked back onto his back…and next to his Crusader shotgun. Swiftly, he nabbed the weapon with his right hand, and, when the creature charged again, fired. The werewolf-like beast staggered back, and roared. Pierson immediately steadied himself, getting his Crusader and Omni-Shield ready, ready to fight…as a massive blue, grey, and white blur shot out of the forest. The creature howled…as it came face to face with an M-300 Claymore, and found its head blown clean off. After a moment, Pierson got a good look at his reinforcement.

"Heh, good to see ya, Rukar, thought I was done-for," Pierson told the Krogan Battlemaster.

Rukar heartily laughed. "Hah, these things are weak. They seem to like human, though: found a whole pack of these things coming your way when I got here. Don't worry, did a little...exterminating."

Pierson breathed a sigh of relief. 'At least I don't need to worry about more of those things, for now…' he thought to himself. He moved around, and gathered his other weapons, his Hurricane SMG and Valkyrie Assault Rifle. He looked over at Rukar, and noticed he has his Striker Assault Rifle, his Punisher SMG, and his Executioner Pistol, his Claymore Shotgun in hand, and quite possibly his M-99 Saber and Graal Spike Thrower in the pack on his back. "Looks like we got everything." He then looked around, before saying, "Looks like there's a city in that direction. Let's go check it out."

"Yeah, maybe they got something to drink there. Hahah!" Rukar laughed, moving in the direction Pierson indicated, Pierson following suite shortly after.

* * *

Tiara Rogers groaned as she got up, but a small thudding got her attention, before hearing a voice that allowed her to settle down. "Engineer Rogers, it is good to see you still functional." Tiara was able to open her eyes, and, when her vision cleared, the large red blur she saw when she awoke was revealed to be Centurion.

"Gah, my head…" Tiara groaned in pain, facing a major headache.

"Hopefully, the headache should dissipate momentarily," Centurion commented.

Drosk then spoke up. "Bullshit, my damn head still hurts, and you said that a few damned minutes ago…"

Centurion ignored the comment from the loud-mouthed Batarian, and helped Tiara to her feet, before going over to Lunn, who'd by that time, already picked himself up. The Quarian looked himself over, before saying, with a relieved sigh, "Good…no suit breaches…"

The group soon gathered their weapons and reserve packs, including Lunn's crates that carried his mixed Quarian/Geth Arsenal; spare parts for the Quarian's environmental suit, weapons, and Omni-Tool; and, by stroke of luck, a good-sized collection of food for Dextro-Amino Acid-based Races. The group decided that he should use the last set of items sparingly, not only for his sake, but if they manage to find Maxivius alive.

Centurion, being the largest and most toughly built of the group and having been the one to carry them previously, volunteered to carry Lunn's crates. The group made their way through the forest, with Lunn and Drosk remaining attentive, and Tiara cataloging the team's equipment and its states of disrepair. Fortunately, most of their weapons were intact, and were all at least usable, although some of their weapons, namely Centurion's Spitfire, Tiara's Typhoon, Drosk's Harpoon Gun, and Lunn's Adas Rifle, have been damaged to where they would soon need immediate repairs.

The team continued their trek through the forest, until, suddenly, Centurion stopped. "Warning. Detecting unknown human approaching." Centurion put the crates down, and the quartet brought out and leveled their main weapons, despite their apparent damage, in the direction of the approaching individual. Suddenly, a human, with grey hair and wearing a suit, advanced into the clearing. The group faced the human, who was now staring into the barrel (or, "barrels", in one weapon's case) of a Geth Spitfire, an N7 Typhoon, a Kishock Harpoon Gun, and a Geth Javelin Rifle.

The human had grey hair; glasses with small, tinted, round lenses; and wore a green suit. He also used a cane, which now stood in front of him, as he analyzed the group. Surprisingly to his comrades, Centurion was the first to lower his weapon. He was also the first to speak. "Identify yourself."

"I am Professor Ozpin, and, I must say, I haven't seen any of you around here before." The other 3, by this point had turned their weapons to this "Ozpin", although, after a few moments, Tiara lowered her Typhoon. "Now, if the rest of you could lower your weapons, maybe we can speak in a civilized manner. All I ask is for you to come with me, so we can talk somewhere where the Grimm won't find us."

"'Grimm'?" Lunn questioned, finally lowering his Geth Sniper Rifle.

Ozpin look puzzled. "You haven't heard of Grimm? Hmmm...you must not be from around here, are you? And by that, I go against my better judgment and would probably guess you may not be from our world..."

"Well, you couldn't be closer to the truth," Tiara spoke up.

"I see..." Ozpin stated, somewhat puzzled, but equally, if not more, intrigued, "Well, if you can get your four-eyed friend to lower his weapon, we might be able to get to Vale, so we can sort this out."

Centurion then stated, "We were with other beings when we arrived here: an Awakened Collector, a Geth Hunter Platform, a Human N7 Paladin, and a Krogan. Have you managed to locate these 4 individuals?"

"I haven't heard of most of what you just said, but I can safely say I have yet to encounter any unusual beings, other than yourselves. If your friends are here, and they are nearby, they may very well be heading to Vale, the nearby city."

"That's what we were thinking," Drosk said, finally lowering his weapon, "We were heading that way, when you came out of nowhere."

Ozpin smiled. "Well then, thank you for lowering that sniper rifle. Now, since I found you, we might as well head to the city together, and maybe we can find your friends there, too."

* * *

Pierson and Rukar arrived on the outskirts of the city, and, looking around, the city was nearly deserted, presumably with everyone home for the night. The duo looked through the city, trying to find either any trace of their comrades or...anyone in general. After searching for some time, fruitlessly, Rukar spoke up. "Come on! Let's try to find a bar. We might be able to find someone who knows something in one."

Pierson sighed. Last thing he wanted to do was deal with a drunk Krogan, but, in the end, he relented. "Very well...we have to find one first."

The Krogan looked ecstatic. "Yes! I spotted one earlier, come on!" The Krogan led the N7 back through a portion of the city, and to a small run-down-looking bar.

"Doesn't look like much," Pierson commented.

Rukar laughed. "Those are the best kind!" The group moved into the bar, and saw several rugged individuals...however, they were all human. "A human bar? Well...guess they might have SOMETHING here..." His comment actually earned him some looks...namely from some people that they both thought were wearing those headbands that sported animal ears. Although, what they noticed was the band parts of them were totally invisible, as if the animal ears were actually attached to their heads, and some of those "ears" twitched, earning some looks from the sharp-eyed Krogan. The duo moved to the bar.

"Wow...never seen one of you before..." the bartender said, looking at the Krogan. The bartender wore a hat, and seemed to be hiding something under it, although neither really cared. "So...what will you two have tonight?"

Rukar asked, "What's the strongest stuff you have?!" The bartender poured some liquor into a shot glass and slid it to the Krogan. The Krogan drank it...before gagging. "Wha-THIS is the strongest you got?! I've drunk drinks WAY stronger than this!"

"Hey, that's the STRONGEST we got, and it usually knocks a grown man down quickly," the Bartender snapped.

"Yeah, a grown MAN! I am NOT man, I AM KROGAN!" Rukar stood up quickly, bumping the bar, knocking over one large man's drink.

The man came over and shoved the Krogan. "Hey, watch where you're going, or I'll make ya, frog-face!"

Rukar simply stood up, revealing that he, in total, stood a good couple heads taller than the man. "What was that?"

The man initially looked shaken, but composed himself, "I said, watch it!" Again, the man shoved the Krogan.

"Do NOT touch me again," Rukar said.

The man responded by shoving harder. "Or wha-"

***SMACK***

Rukar punched the man in the face, causing him to fly backward far, knocking him into the wall, embedding him into it, and leaving him unconscious. The room was silent for a moment, before 3 more burly men rose, and marched towards the Battlemaster. "Hahah...now it gets FUN!"

Pierson then looked at the bartender. "Please give me what you gave him...I'm gonna need it after this..."

"He that bad?" the bartender asked, as the 3 men tried to fight Rukar, who easily overpowered them.

Pierson responded, "Obviously, you've never worked with a Krogan..."

The bartender asked, "Uhm...what's a Krogan?"

"Ugh, guess we're gonna be here a while..."

Over the next hour, as Rukar fought every bar guest who tried to fight him, and Pierson tried to explain the...intricacies...of the Krogan to the bartender, the bartender tried to make something that would calm the frog-headed alien down...of course, he had to keep making the drink purer and purer, as he heard of what these Krogan could do. It was the description of "Ryncol" that made the bartender decide "screw it" and have the drink distilled to 100% pure alcohol.

By then, the bar's patrons were all unconscious or huddling on their stools to avoid the enraged alien's notice. The creature then returned to the counter, before the bartender passed him the glass. The Krogan shrugged and drank everything from the glass. A moment later, he belched. "Eh, it's not ryncol, but...it's something, I guess..."

"Uhhh...Rukar...we have to go...we need to find the others..." Pierson reminded him.

Rukar seemed to only JUST remember. "Oh, that's right: you haven't seen a brown and green Collector and a Geth Hunter, have you?" The bartender just gave a confused look.

Pierson spoke up. "I don't think they're familiar with the races we are: he hadn't even heard of a Krogan until today."

"You're kidding! Damn, looks like we're on our own for now..." With that, the Krogan and N7 operative left the bar.

However, after they walked out, the bartender got a call from his cousin, a shopkeeper a few blocks away. "Hey, cuz, what's up? Really...are you serious?...No-no, I ask because I was just visited by a human in unusual armor and a frog-faced alien...No, I'm not mocking you, kid, for real...I had to give the frog alien a drink made of nothing but pure alcohol, and he knocked out most of my patrons who tried to fight him...Hey, hey, if you think I'm mocking you, just come by later, and look for yourself, alright?...Alright, see you then, bye..."

* * *

The Geth and Collector entered the city, and immediately set out to find the others. However, it soon dawned on them that they were drawing unwanted attention. They initially thought it was their weapons, but it was soon they realized it was their appearances: it seemed these people were not even aware of the existence of Geth or Collectors, as the looks, while nervous, were more of awe and confusion, than they were of fear, like the duo were used to. Even so, they were drawing too much attention to themselves. In response, the duo looked for, and located, a clothing shop.

Inside the shop, the duo saw a young woman, who appeared to be the owner of the shop, being harassed by a pair of men. The most notable feature the woman had was that she had, in addition to her regular human ears, a set of mouse-like ears sticking out of her head. The men appeared to be going after her ears, laughing as they tugged on it. Retribution wasn't exactly indifferent about the woman's plight, but saw no point in intervening. However, something about the woman's plight struck a cord in Enigma. The Geth Hunter advanced, Retribution following, finding his companion's action reason enough to intervene. The 2 men noticed the approaching aliens, looking at them with a confused look, while the woman turned a little fearful.

"Hey, what're you doing here? What ARE you anyways?"

Enigma didn't answer. Rather, he grabbed the man's collar, and, with his superior strength, he lifted the man off the floor. He then stared at the man, with his single, red optic. The man seemed to grow more unnerved with each passing moment. The man's partner was about to intervene...only for Retribution to lift him off the ground with his biotics. Enigma finally spoke. "Your actions insinuate your racism of her, due to her inhuman features. I cannot allow that to continue. Surrender and depart, or you will be terminated."

The man whimpered, frightened, and was dropped...followed by him fleeing. Then, Retribution dropped the man's counterpart, who also fled. There was silence in the room for a brief moment, before Retribution addressed the mouse-eared woman. "We require garments to hide our identities. Do you have any cloaks?" His deep, almost synthesized voice was somewhat disturbing to the woman, who gestured to the back of the store, where a bunch of cloaks were lined.

Retribution selected a sage green cloak, while Enigma, predictably, selected a pitch-black one. The duo approached, and asked the woman, "What do you use as money here, and how much are these?"

The woman paused for a moment, before saying, "Just...just take them..." She was half-grateful for them scaring those thugs off...but also half-frightened of her saviors. If letting them have these cloaks was enough to repay them for their help, and get them to leave, she was more than happy to do it.

The duo paused for a moment, as though not going for it, before Enigma stated, "Very well. Thank you." The woman was shocked when the cycloptic synthetic gave a small bow, and he and the Collector left.

Immediately after they were gone, she called the only person she thought to call: her cousin, a bartender in a nearby bar. "Hey, cuz, you'll never believe what just happened: an alien and an alien robot came in and chased off 2 thugs that were bothering me...Yes, I'm serious, you think I'm going nuts?...Oh, now you're mocking me?...Oh, really, at the same time as me?...Oh yeah? Can you prove it?...Alright, fine, I'll see you when I get off...Bye..."

* * *

Now cloaked, Retribution and Enigma were not getting anymore weird looks, other than the normal ones given to cloaked beings. The duo moved through the city. They were currently conversing in Khelish, hoping that the humans of the city would just assume they were foreigners.

"I am still not detecting the others' Omni-Tools. I am encountering interference. I may be able to compensate, but we must find the origin to the interference first," Enigma announced.

"I understand. Can you locate the closest source?" Retribution asked.

"A couple blocks ahead. We must move." The duo continued to a store, the sign calling the place "From Dust Till Dawn". Looking at each other and nodding, they entered the store. They looked around. The only 2 individuals in there was an old human male, almost bald with all the hair on top of his head gone, and a young human female, only a teenager, in the corner. The human female wore a red cloak and had her hood up. There was loud music blaring from her direction, supposedly from the headphones she was wearing.

The old man, supposedly the shop owner, tensed. Enigma simply stated, "We are here to look around. You may ignore us." The man seemed to settle down, as the duo moved off, scanning the powder in tubes along the wall, as Retribution came and looked through the crystals under the counter, before moving to the magazine rack near the human girl. The girl ignored him as he searched through the magazines for information on this new world, his Collector mind immediately assimilating the information with each page turn. Soon, he'd looked through enough magazines to learn a few basics about this world. He moved to regroup with Enigma. The 2 continued conversing in Khelish.

"Retribution, I have deduced that this powder, and those crystals are indeed the source of the interference," Enigma stated.

Retribution replied, "I have absorbed information from several periodicals. It is called "Dust", and appears to be this world's analogue to Element Zero, complete with serving a purpose vaguely similar to Biotics."

"I see..." the Geth said. Suddenly, they heard someone else enter the store. A man in a bowler hat, wearing a white suit entered, escorted by 4 men wearing similar black suits, black fedoras, and sunglasses with red shades, rather than black ones. The duo watched as the men began to rob the place. Before they could act, however, Retribution saw one go for the red-cloaked girl, his gun turning into a sword. The man seemed to at least have the courtesy of ensuring his target knew he was there, and understood what was happening, as the girl, until the man pulled down her hood, seemed completely oblivious to everything going on. The Collector eavesdropped on the exchange.

"Yes?" the girl asked the robber.

"I said, put your hands in the air, now!"

"Are you... robbing me?"

"Yes!"

Retribution was about to intervene, before..."Ooohhh..." The tone the girl spoke in was not fear...but more like someone who was about to-

***BAM***

Retribution watched, shocked, as the young girl struck the mugger, and sent him flying. The man with the bowler hat sent another minion after her, as Retribution dragged Enigma over. "What is it, Collector Retri-"

"Quiet. Watch." The duo watched as the mugger pointed a gun at the girl...and a moment later, the girl attacked again, sending her and the attacker through the window. The robbers and their leader gathered at the window, Retribution and Enigma looking from afar. They watched as the girl rose up off the man, holding a small metal rectangle...which quickly unfolded into a massive scythe, twice her size. To the shock of both, not only did she lift the massive weapon with little effort, she was able to spin the weapon, with some finesse, before slamming it, blade-down, into the ground, leveling it with the thugs...before finally turning her headphones off.

The thugs readied to attack, and before Enigma could attack, Retribution held him back. "Hold...let's observe how the people here fight..." Enigma realized the advantage this would give them, knowing how fights are fought here, and therefore stood down.

What followed afterwards was a total "curb-stomp", as the humans called it, as the girl soundly defeated the thugs. Retribution was first to voice his thoughts. "Interesting: her scythe appears to contain in integrated sniper rifle, and the recoil is such that she is capable of utilizing it to propel herself in combat. Normally, such recoil would be detrimental, but she can actually use it to boost her melee attack power, and agility in combat."

"Indeed, and with it, she defeated these thieves. Let us she how she handles the ringleader."

The ring-leader, in question, advanced on the girl, and, after muttering something, said to the girl, "Well, Red, I think we can all say it's been an eventful evening, and as much as I'd love to stick around..." Suddenly, he leveled his cane on the girl, the "foot" of the cane turning into a weapons sight. "...I'm afraid this is where we part ways."

Suddenly, Retribution decided now was the time to strike. He launched himself forwards, firing a Seeker Swarm at the man. "What the-" the man exclaimed as the Collector's insectoid minions reached him, stinging him repeating. Then, Enigma advanced, using his Omni-Tool to fire a flamer attack at the man, momentarily setting him on fire. However, the man pulled out and broke a blue crystal, which suddenly extinguished the fire. Enigma drew his Javelin rifle...drawing the attention of the girl, who seemed instantly attracted to the Geth Sniper Weapon. The weapon was now pointing at the man. "Well...looks like I got 3 people here...no matter...Still, I gotta get going. Bye!" He then threw a yellow crystal, and leveled his cane again...the cane shooting a red pulse, hitting the crystal and causing lightning to erupt where the crystal was before, giving the man a chance to climb up a nearby ladder.

The girl looked at the shopkeeper, who'd come out after the thugs were put down. "You okay if I go after him?" the girl asked him, and was off in a flash when the man answered in the affirmative.

Enigma was slowed by the lightning, but told Retribution to go on ahead. He followed, launching himself to the roof with his wings, tailing the red-cloaked girl as she used her scythe's gun recoil to launch herself skywards and onto the roof. The girl's eyes met Retribution's "face" (which was still obscured by the cloak), and nodded to him, confirming they were on the same side here. Retribution nodded in return, and the duo charged the man in the Bowler Hat. When the duo caught up with him, the girl shouted, "Hey!"

The man with the hat stopped for a minute, and muttered, "Persistent..."

Suddenly, a dual-engined aircraft appeared, rising out from behind the building, stunning both pursuers. The man climbed into the aircraft and pulled out a red crystal. Considering the previous blue and yellow ones seemed linked to ice and lightning respectively, Retribution was fully expecting a fiery explosion from this one. "End of the line, Red and Green!" the man called at them.

Suddenly, there was a battle cry, and a blue, grey, and white blob fell from above, onto the dropship, causing it to drop significantly. The individual rolled off of it, revealing himself. "Good to see I finally caught ya, Retty!" Wraksan Rukar said to his comrade. Lowering from the sky was another, similar dropship, which leveled with the other one.

"Rukar, where is Pierson?" Retribution asked.

"Can't you tell? He's flying the dropship."

"How did you get it though?" the girl asked.

"Hah, roughed up some of those goons, kid. I'll have you know we Krogan can be...persuasive..." Rukar boasted.

***Flashback***

"Hey, how much for the ship?" Pierson asked.

The cluster of suited men looked at each other, and gave menacing smiles. "How about you give us that nice-looking armor, and we keep our ship?"

"So...we gotta do things the hard way...Rukar!" Then, the Krogan burst out, the thugs trembling at the sight of a large Krogan charging them.

***End Flashback***

Suddenly, a streak of fire shot from the bowler hat man's dropship, striking the one Pierson was piloting, forcing Pierson to bail out. He rolled to the group, activating his Omni-Shield (and "Red" now marveling the Omni-Shield). Finally, Enigma, finally recovered, was able to climb up and join them.

"Fine..." the hatted man said, "End of the line for ALL OF YA!" he finally threw the crystal and fired. The blast from the crystal was huge, as Retribution predicted. However, no one was wounded: a human female had appeared, and somehow shielded the team from attack, without being harmed herself. Once the explosion cleared, the team got a good look of her: she had blonde hair and green eyes, wore a black and white outfit with purple trim, and had a black and purple cape that, at first glance, looked tattered and old, but further focus on it made it appear as if it was intentionally designed the way it looked. She wielded what, at first glance, looked like some kind of wand. However, further inspection revealed it to be riding crop. However, it seemed to have a wand-like purpose, as the woman then used it to fire a cluster of purple streaks at the dropship, causing the large vehicle to notably shift.

The hatted man moved the the front of the craft, and was soon replaced by a woman in a red minidress. The woman with the crop, however, wasted no time, and, with a wave of the crop, summoned storm clouds over the dropship, which, at the woman's command, began hammering the craft with sharp, spike-like shards of ice. Suddenly, the red-dressed woman fired a flare of fire at the group. The woman seemed ready to block it, but Pierson rolled forward, bringing his Omni-Shield to bear. The fiery blast washed over the shield and dissipated. He then rolled away, as the ground began to glow under the duo. It soon exploded, but, by then the team scattered across the rooftop, only the mysterious woman, the red-cloaked girl, and Retribution grouped together. Then, the woman telekinetically picked up the the shards from the roof created by the explosion, and made a lance with them, which she launched at the aircraft. The red-dressed woman blasted it apart, only for it to reform and continue on its path. Then, likely due to the bowler hatted man who was now flying the craft, the dropship angled, the lance sliding harmlessly across the top. However, far from finished, the woman caused the shards to form serpentine patterns and fly around the dropship, striking it from multiple angles. That lasted until the red-dressed woman fired a fiery shockwave that obliterated the shards.

The girl with the scythe, however, suddenly turned the scythe into some kind of rifle, firing blasts at the ship, only for them to be blocked by the woman in the red dress, who then spread fiery dots across the roof. The woman in black and white seemed about to use her power to toss the girl to the side, only for Retribution, who again deployed his wings, to grab the girl and lift them both up to a safe distance, the woman below free to evade without worrying about the girl. However, by the time they were ready to fight again, the dropship's door closed, and the craft began to flee. The team regrouped, and, drawing weapons, fired at the retreating craft, only for it to escape. They waited for a few moments, before, suddenly, they heard a squealing. A check revealed, however, for it to be just the girl, who called the woman a "Huntress", and asking for an autograph. They didn't catch the "Huntress's" response, but whatever it was, caused the girl to show a shocked expression, then a dejected one. The woman then pointed to the ladder, and the girl, sulking now, moved to it and climbed down. Then, her gaze fell upon the quartet. "You should come with us too. Ozpin said for me to bring to him anymore unusual beings I find..."

"Wait," Pierson said, "Did you say "anymore"? As in, we're not the first offworlders to come here?"

The woman glared at him, and his use of the term "offworlder". "While I find the notion preposterous myself, I can't deny that your frog-faced friend is not of Remnant. Besides, something has Ozpin thinking you might be not of this world, and, as I said, he wants to talk to you all at once...and to answer your question: yes, you are not the first."

* * *

Retribution, Enigma, Pierson, and Rukar entered the dark room, and were met by a welcome sight. "Well, aren't you 4 a sight for sore eyes," Tiara said, accompanied by Centurion, Drosk, and Lunn.

"Good to see you guys made it," Pierson said, relieved, "Where were you?"

Lunn answered, "Found by some grey-haired man in a green suit, and a cane, in the middle of a forest. He brought us here, and said if we explained what we're doing here when you guys were found, he'd help us find you...guess he followed through on his end of the bargain."

Pierson then asked, "So...what would there be to tell him?"

"Who you people are, for one." The voice came from the door, and the 8 soldiers faced a grey-haired man, that matched Lunn's description. "I heard Professor Goodwitch found you, along with a young girl, fighting a well-known criminal, Roman Torchwick."

"I take it this "Goodwitch" is the woman brandishing the riding crop like a wand," Retribution guessed.

The man nodded. "Exactly. Anyways, I am Professor Ozpin, Headmaster of Beacon Academy, and you 8 are..."

"Hah! Wraksan Rukar, as in Rukar of Clan Wraksan, Krogan Battlemaster" the Krogan replied.

"Pierson Chancellor, N7 Paladin of the Systems Alliance."

"Tiara Rogers, N7 Demolisher, also of the Systems Alliance."

"Lunn'Faanar vas Vera, Infiltrator.

"Drosk Dosnahal, former pirate and Slasher under the employ of the Systems Alliance, to help fight the Reapers."

"Platform-37x, designation "Enigma"."

"Platform-174c, designation "Centurion"."

Retribution remained silent for a moment, resulting in Ozpin saying out loud, "And you would be...?"

Retribution stared back at Ozpin with his 6 glowing eyes, before finally deciding to say, "I am called by the designation "Retribution". That is the only name I have."

Ozpin looked quizzically at the Collector, before returning his attention to the group as a whole. "Well, now that introductions are out of the way, I would like to know more about your people..." He then looked at the 6 different races in the room. "Or...peoples..."

The 8 of them revealed what they could about their races and societies. He was told about the Citadel, the Batarian Hegemony, the Quarians, the Geth, and other topics. Then they described the Reapers and their powers, as well as the Reaper War that was currently going on: the advances the Reapers had made in the war, and the exploits of Commander Jane Shepard. They described the curing of the Genophage, the alliance with the Rachni, the recruiting of Leviathan, the reuniting of the Geth and Quarians, among Shepard's other recent exploits. Finally, they told Ozpin of the battle of Ontarom, or at least what wouldn't be harmful to the people of Citadel space.

Near the end, Retribution noticed the blonde haired-woman walk by the door, with the head of the girl with the scythe from earlier barely visible next to her. It was not too much longer afterwards that Ozpin got to the point. "From the sounds of it, if you could arrive here, these...Reapers...can too...We might need people with your level of expertise on them, in case they ever come to our world."

"I would probably agree," Pierson commented.

"Furthermore, I would be guessing you'd need more knowledge of our world to survive here, as well as a place to stay."

"I believe that's true as well," Lunn replied.

Ozpin planned what he was going to ask for a while, so he cut to the chase. "You see, on our world, there are warriors called "Hunters", who fight the Grimm and other threats of our world. I run the academy for in-training Hunters called Beacon Academy."

"Why would you be revealing this information in this manner, unless you mean to try to recruit us to join Beacon Academy?" Enigma asked.

"Because that's exactly what I intend on asking," Ozpin replied plainly. "Hunters and Huntresses are seen, in our world, in a light similar to your Spectres, meaning that you could potentially be in a position to coordinate a defense against the Reapers, even still as students, should they arrive. Furthermore, you will have food, shelter, and access to information on our world, thereby allowing you to learn of the abilities of the races here: if what you say is true, the concept of indoctrinated Grimm is, admittedly, a frightening prospect. So, I ask: will you come to Beacon Academy, and become Hunters, to better help protect our world against this threat?"

The team thought for a moment, and converse with themselves. While they seemed initially uncertain, the description of these "Grimm", and the threat they'd present to the Allied Forces, should the Reapers indoctrinate some of the larger species and deployed them, especially given their reported resilience, began to make them think joining this "Beacon Academy" might be a smart option. Include in there how they don't know how to get back to their world, and...

"We will join you," Retribution said, speaking for the group.

Ozpin nodded in approval. "Excellent. You'll take an airship to Beacon tomorrow. Now, if you'll excuse me..." His comment was interrupted by an "Eeek!" from the neighboring room. "...I have to speak to another prospecting young recruit for Beacon..."

* * *

**Well, here's the chapter. As you've already guessed, this crossover will be following RWBY from the very beginning of the series, although, I will say, that, at some point, this fanfic WILL diverge from the RWBY storyline. When the divergence begins, and what happens to cause it, however, I will not say…*snicker***

**Furthermore, I'm sorry for my "wet paper bag" depiction of how the team accepts going to Beacon, but, TBH, my mind's gears ground to a halt on that...If someone comes up with a better idea, I'll consider retconning the chapter with the "better" recruitment. Until then, though...onto Chapter 3!**


	4. Chapter 3 - Priority: Beacon I

**So, here comes Chapter 3, and the 8 soldiers are now on their way to Beacon. I never caught how long after the "interrogation" scene that Ruby and Yang were on their way to Beacon, so I settled for 2 days, both because it was short enough to make sense, and long enough to allow the ME soldiers to learn SOMETHING about Remnant.  
**

**Also, don't be surprised if the size of the chapters becomes erratic, I can almost guarantee there'll be some chapters that'll be either EXCESSIVELY large or EXCESSIVELY small...**

**Priority: Beacon I**

* * *

The octet had boarded the airship a while ago, the ship already underway. Seven of the eight conversed about what this "Beacon Academy" would be like; the Geth curious about what information the academy holds, the Krogan hoping for something strong to drink there. The only one not conversing was the group's Collector. Retribution was spending his time analyzing a particular pair on the airship.

"Oh, I can't believe my baby sister is going to Beacon with me! This is the best day ever!"

"Please stop."

"But I'm so proud of you!"

Retribution watched as the 2 young women, one of them he identified as the girl from 2 nights ago, interacted. The second young woman, who identified herself as the girl's sister, seemed excited and proud of her for getting into this school, while the girl was trying to avoid making a big deal out of it. His calculating and analytical mind was able to determine the girl was 15 years old, and, from his research on this "Beacon Academy", before coming to this airfield, typically, only 17 year olds were allowed to apply. He realized that the girl must be a special case, and he believes he was present for part of why she was accepted, he realized, remembering the robbery he helped her thwart 2 nights ago.

Barely any time passed as he thought on this, and turned his attention back to the 2 girls' conversation.

The first comment he heard this time was from the blonde young woman. "What's with you? Aren't you excited?"

The other girl said, "Of course I'm excited... I just..." The girl sighed before continuing. "I got moved ahead _two years_. I don't want people to think I'm special or anything."

The blonde gave her a one-armed hug, before responding, "But you _are_ special."

Just then, a news report appeared on the TV. Retribution barely paid it any mind, although he recognized the criminal, Roman Torchwick, from 2 nights ago, realizing the news report was on the robbery. Then, it swapped to something about a "Faunas Civil Rights Protest" that got disrupted by a group called the "White Fang". Retribution recognized the "Faunas" in the image as being similar to the mouse-eared woman from the store 2 nights ago. "These 'faunas' must be discriminated against, like the Geth, Quarians, and Krogan were, before the war," Retribution muttered to himself.

"Safe assessment." Retribution didn't notice as Enigma had come up alongside him. "It is...irrational...to assume that the world we entered would be without discrimination, especially after the observation from the Clothing Requisitions Facility."

"Weren't you talking with the others?" Retribution asked.

Enigma answered, "The others wanted to know why you weren't."

Then, their attention was taken by a hologram of Goodwitch that replaced the news report. The duo were soon joined by their compatriots.

"Hello, and welcome to Beacon!" the hologram said.

"Who's that?" Drosk asked.

"That would be-" Enigma began, but the hologram interrupted him.

"My name is Glynda Goodwitch."

"So, that's Goodwitch," Lunn said.

"You are among a privileged few who have received the honor of being selected to attend this prestigious academy! Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace, and as future Huntsmen and Huntresses, it is your duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such a task, and now it is our turn to provide you with the knowledge and the training to protect our world." With that, Goodwitch's hologram vanished.

"So...that was interesting, right Retty?" Pierson asked, before noticing Retribution wasn't paying attention, watching the duo from earlier.

"Oh, wow! Look, you can see Signal from up here! I guess home isn't too far after all!" the girl said, as Retribution listened from a distance.

The blonde responded, "Beacon's our home, now." Just then, Retribution, not to mention the 2 girls, noticed a young man with blonde hair, who looked ready to vomit. The blonde rolled her eyes. "Well... I guess the view isn't for everyone."

The other girl stated, "It was a nice moment while it lasted." She paused for a moment, before stating, "I wonder who we're gonna meet!"

"Ugh, I just hope they're better than Vomit Boy," Yang stated. Suddenly, "Vomit Boy" staggered forward, and threw up at Yang's feet, which would have been covered in vomit, were it not for the green, crackling biotic field that appeared around them. "What the-" Both girls looked in Retribution's direction, seeing a crackling green field around his hand.

"I believe that would be a "close one"," Retribution stated, using his biotics to move the vomit to the appropriate garbage receptacle.

"Uhm...thanks, I guess, Mr 6-Eyes..." the blonde stated nervously.

However, the other girl remembered him. "Hey, you're the guy from the robbery, the one that helped me fight Torchwick."

Retribution nodded. "Indeed."

"This is the "bug-man" that helped you?" the blonde said in surprise, "I thought you just imagined that part."

Retribution sighed inwardly. 'Then again, I guess it's safe to say they've never seen, or better yet, heard of, a Collector before.'

The blonde then said, "I'm Yang, and this is my sister Ruby." The girl in red nodded nervously.

The Collector looked at them both, Yang's expression slowing turning from a smile to a grimace, as though expecting something. Inwardly, the Collector sighed. "I lost my name a long time ago. In recent days, I have been called 'Retribution'."

"'Retribution'? What kind of a name is that?"

"My people were wiped out long ago. 'Retribution' is what I intend to deliver unto their slayers, and so, from that, I derived my name," the insectoid humanoid responded.

"Their...slayers?" Yang asked.

"It is a...long story..." Retribution responded, oddly scratching the back of his chitinous head, "And it appears we will be arriving soon. So, I must regroup with my comrades. Good day." Retribution then returned to the others, although he could vaguely hear Yang's voice questioningly mentioning him.

* * *

The octet were among the last to exit the airship, those with noses immediately being hit by the sent of vomit from the trashcan outside. The group walked out onto the platform, and finally saw Beacon Academy in front of them. While Pierson and Tiara were certainly impressed and Drosk, Rukar, and Lunn were most definitely awed, Enigma, Centurion, and Retribution were not impressed as much. The group advanced towards Beacon, when Retribution noticed Ruby, who was then abandoned by her sister Yang, and sent spinning...right into a luggage trolley filled with white suitcases. At which point, a young woman in a white dress, with white hair and blue eyes, started yelling at Ruby.

"What are you doing?!"

Ruby, somewhat upset by her predicament, said, "Uh, sorry!"

The girl in white, however, wasn't satisfied. "Sorry?! Do you have any idea of the damage you could have caused?"

"Uuhhh..." was all Ruby could get out, trying to pass one of the girl's suitcases back to her, only for the young woman to snatch it from Ruby's hands.

"Give me that!" The girl then explained, showing the suitcase's contents, "This is _Dust_ - mined and purified from the Schnee quarry!"

'Dust?' Retribution thought, 'That stuff from the store. How much does that girl have?'

"Uuuhhhh..." was all Ruby could get out, but the girl in white wasn't waiting for her to catch up.

"What are you, brain-dead?" The girl then took out a vial of red dust powder from the case. He immediately remembered the effect the red shard that Roman threw at them 2 nights ago had, and was guessing this was the same. "**Dust**! Fire, water, lightning, energy!"

"I... I know..." Immediately, the vial began seeping dust, which got in Ruby's face, and it was obvious to Retribution it was irritating her nose...not so obvious to the girl in white, however.

"Are you even listening to me? Is any of this sinking in? What have you got to say for yourself?!" the other girl yelled.

Suddenly, Ruby sneezed, and Retribution, acting fast, created a biotic field around the dust, as it ignited. However, the fireball managed to escape, and left a layer of soot on the girl in white. However, that got Ruby's attention, having seen that kind of field before. Her head snapped in Retribution's direction. Meanwhile, the vial of dust the girl in white was holding had bounced towards another person, nearby, and the explosion was enough to grab the attention of one of Retribution's team.

"Collector Retribution. I detected an explosion. What hap-" Enigma paused, as he noticed the girl covered in soot, and Ruby nervously touching her pointer fingers together. Were this before the Battle of Rannoch, Enigma would have just continued with his concern, not even pausing in his speech, but, with the ability to feel emotion now, the Geth couldn't help but find the scene hilarious. Rather than laugh, however, his secondary targeting sensor light blinked on and off, which Retribution had come to know to be synonymous with laughter.

"Laugh it up, Synthetic."

However, the girl in white was just made more angry. "Unbelievable! This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about!" Then, she noticed the 2 bystanders. "And who are you?!"

"I am the one here to ensure that blame is given where due," Retribution said, a hint of threatening tone directed at this upstart and pompous young woman.

"Oh yeah, then why are you staring at me, then? Why not the clutz?!"

"Firstly," Retribution said, his voice deepening and gaining a stronger synthetic edge to it, enough to send a shiver of fear up both humans' spines, "She was knocked off-balance by outside forces, which knocked her into your trolley. It wasn't her own clumsiness that did the act, as you insinuate." His eyes began to glow for emphasis, and green lightning crackled across his body, completing his frightening visage. "Secondly, YOU were the one who released Dust into the air, and therefore, her sneeze was on your hands, and your hands ALONE."

The girl in white was actually frightened by the insectoid creature staring at her in intense rage, and was actually silent for a moment. Then, she turned her attention back at Ruby. Her voice still contained a certain level of contempt, but it felt more restrained now, as though still trying to show Ruby who she felt was superior, but trying to avoid the ire of the insectoid glaring at her. "What are you even _doing_ here, anyways? Aren't you a little young to be attending Beacon?"

"Well, I-I..." Ruby said, nervous.

However, this was enough to make the girl in white momentarily forget who was watching, and give a response with a similar tone as before. "This isn't your ordinary combat school. It's not just sparring and practice, you know! We're here to fight _monsters_, so... watch where you're going!"

Before Retribution could reprimand her again, Ruby snapped. "Hey, I said I was sorry, princess!"

"It's heiress, actually." Having been focused on the conversation, Retribution and Enigma hadn't noticed the 3rd girl approach the group. Both Enigma and Retribution immediately scanned her. She appeared to be wearing a black and white outfit, and sported a little black bow on her head. Retribution found little unusual with her, other than her abnormal eye color, but Enigma's sensors detected something more...off...about the newcomer, but he couldn't quite place it. He'd have to analyze the data at a better time. The new girl then set out to identify the girl in white. "Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. One of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world."

The girl in white, now identified as Weiss, said with relief, and smugness, "Finally! Some recognition!"

Just then, the young woman in black stated, further describing the Schnee Dust Company, "The same company infamous for its controversial labor forces and questionable business partners."

Before Weiss could respond, a boisterous voice spoke out, "Hahah! Sounds like half the companies operating in the Terminus Systems!" Retribution and Enigma looked over to see their companions approaching, Rukar being the one speaking. "Come on, you two, we need to get inside."

Angered more, now, Weiss stormed off, and the rest of the group dragged Retribution and Enigma with them. Retribution, however, looked back.

"I promise I'll make this up to you!" Ruby had yelled at the retreating form of Weiss. She then spoke towards the black-garbed girl. "I guess I'm not the only one having a rough first day... So, what's..." She then noticed that she had left too, leaving Ruby alone, sinking to the ground in sadness. "Welcome to Beacon..."

For a reason he couldn't trace, he felt a bit of sorrow for her, although that dissipated somewhat when he saw the puking boy from earlier come to her. "Hey... I'm Jaune." The boy, Jaune, then held a hand towards Ruby, offering to help her up.

"Ruby." Retribution, for reasons he couldn't place, felt somewhat glad when Ruby was helped there. He, however, was also worried. Why was he so worried about this one girl? Just then, his thoughts were interrupted by Ruby asking Jaune, "Aren't you the guy that threw up on the ship?"

* * *

Rukar wandered around the campus. He was sent by Retribution to locate Jaune and Ruby, who had not arrived in the main hall, supposedly having gotten lost. He didn't know why Retribution had taken such an interest in the girl: if he didn't know Retribution as well as he did, he'd have claimed that he was smitten with her. However, since he DOES know Retribution as well as he did, he felt this was preposterous: while Retribution wasn't emotionless, he didn't feel excessively strong emotions, like fury or love. He cared about his companions, and he was angered when they were injured, but he didn't fall in love, and he wouldn't be thrown into a blind rage, even if his squad was wiped out. So why did he give such a damn about this "Ruby" girl?

Rukar laughed though: this interest in a single human was still amusing to Rukar, and he and Drosk could easily spin this into a joke they could use against the semi-stoic Awakened Collector. However, first thing's first: he had to find Jaune and Ruby, before they were late.

Rukar was conflicted about this situation: he didn't like being in such a...strict...environment, like this academy already seemed. However, there is one thing he DID like: at this school, he would work alongside those learning to do what, in Urdnot Wrex's words, Krogan do best: "Saving everyone else from giant monsters". When Clan Urdnot took control of the Krogan race, and Urdnot Wrex changed the goal of the Krogan in galactic affairs to a less aggressive approach, the Krogan split into 3 different mindsets: one was the traditionalists, who wanted to take vengeance for the Genophage, who Clan Urdnot is currently working to stop from declaring war with the rest of the galaxy; another the reformists who fully support Clan Urdnot's semi-diplomatic approach to galactic affairs. The third, of which Rukar himself belonged, was the intermediates: those who are still aggressive and expansive, but possess enough self-restraint to keep from blindly expanding and starting wars with everyone. Rukar was also aware of the fact that Wrex could actually be considered an intermediate himself: he still enjoyed fighting, but still worked to keep the peace between the Krogan and the galaxy.

Finally, he heard talking, one of the voices sounded like the girl "Ruby", and the male voice, he guessed was Jaune.

"So why'd you help me out back there? In the courtyard?"

"Eh, why not? My mom always says, 'strangers are just friends you haven't met yet'."

Rukar chuckled at the logic Jaune displayed. "Can never be too sure, kid," he muttered to himself.

"Hmm." Ruby looked around, before asking, "Hey, where are we going?"

Jaune commented, "Oh, I don't know! I was following you. Y-You think there might be a directory? Maybe a food court? Some kind of recognizable landmark? Is, uh... Is that a 'no'?"

Ruby laughed. "That's a 'no'."

"And that's the sign the Krogan has to be the babysitter. Couldn't you 2 get lost closer to the hall?" the Krogan asked, approaching.

Both individuals jumped. "Hey," Ruby said, "You're that...guy...from the roof, then the airship, then-"

"Yeah, yeah, I recall. Names Rukar, of Clan Wraksan."

"I'm Ruby, Ruby Rose," Ruby said.

"Yeah, yeah, I know who you are: barely heard your sister introduce you to Retty."

Ruby snickered at the Collector's nickname. "Retty?"

"Yeah, you don't think we call him Retribution ALL the time, do you? Too long..." Rukar then turned to Jaune, "And you are Jaune, I presume?"

"Uhhh...yeah..." Jaune replied.

"Well, come on, then! We don't want to be late! I hope there's something to eat here!"

* * *

The group of Ruby, Jaune, and Rukar finally made it to the main hall, where everyone was gathered. Once the trio entered, they heard someone call out. "Ruby! Over here! I saved you a spot!"

Ruby responded, "Oh! Hey, I-I gotta go! See you after the ceremony!" She then left to reunite with her sister.

Rukar nodded at Jaune. "Hey, good luck here, but I gotta get back to my team. See ya 'round, kid."

Rukar left without giving Jaune time to respond, and he found his way back to the others. "Got the kids, Retty, you really gotta not worry like that: it doesn't look good on you."

Retribution stated, "I didn't want them missing this meeting, it could be urgent."

Drosk then snarked, "Didn't want _them_ or didn't want _her_ to miss it?" The Batarian then snickered.

"Your insinuation is hardly appropriate, Batarian. She is merely 15 and I am within the thousands of years when it comes to age. Hardly appropriate."

"Meh, hasn't stopped people before."

Their argument was stopped, when they heard someone shout.

"**You!**"

"Oh, God, it's happening again!"

Retribution looked over and saw Ruby in another confrontation with the girl Weiss from earlier. He felt a piece of his Prothean side sliver into him as he thought, exasperatedly, '_Primitives..._'

"You're lucky we weren't blown off the side of the cliff!" Weiss yelled again. Retribution began to move in their direction, his large form strangely silent as he moved through the crowd.

"Oh, my God, you really exploded..." Yang deadpanned.

'No shit, Sherlock,' Retribution thought to himself, his so-called 'Primitive' side seeping back into his mind.

Ruby then climbed down off her sister, before stating, "It was an accident. It was an accident!" Just then, Weiss held up a pamphlet, that Retribution could tell was called _"DUST for dummies and other Inadequate Individuals",_ handing it to Ruby. "What's this?" she asked.

Weiss then stated, "The Schnee Dust Company is not responsible for any injuries or damages sustained while operating a Schnee Dust Company product. Although not mandatory, the Schnee Family highly encourages customers to read and familiarize themselves with this easy to follow guide to Dust applications and practices in the field."

"Uuhhh...?" was all Ruby could say in reply.

Weiss then asked, "You really wanna start making things up to me?"

"Absolutely?" Ruby nervously stated.

Weiss then responded, "Read this, and don't ever speak to me again."

Yang then interfered, "Look, uh, it sounds like you two just got off on the wrong foot. Why don't you start over and try to be friends, okay?"

Feeling this could just escalate things, Retribution decided to make himself known. "Did you have another of those pamphlets?"

"Yeah, yeah, why are you aski-EEEP!" Weiss was shocked by the sight of the "bug-man" from earlier standing behind her, his arms crossed. Then, somewhat confused (but still fearful, so keeping her attitude in check as best she could), she asked, "Why?"

"I and my team are not from around here, and our knowledge of Dust, while rudimentary, is still lacking," Retribution explained.

Weiss then nervously handed Retribution a pamphlet like the one she gave Ruby just now, and was about to leave, when they heard Professor Ozpin's voice.

"I'll... keep this brief. You have traveled here today in search of knowledge - to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you...well, most of you...and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step."

Next, it was Goodwitch's turn. "You will gather in the ballroom tonight; tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed."

"He seemed kind of... off," Yang said.

Ruby added, "It's almost like he wasn't even there."

"Eccentricy can sometimes be the sign of a brilliant mind. I know that from experience," Retribution stated.

Suddenly, they heard Jaune say, "I'm a natural blonde, you know!" He'd somehow approached Weiss from the side, who could only respond in exasperation.

* * *

The team, used to all nighters and days without sleep (2 of their members not even requiring sleep and one only requires a short weekly snooze at most), were up for a while after dark, discussing their course of action. "Tomorrow is the initiation ceremony," Enigma explained, briefing the group, "From my research, and spy operations performed by Centurion's and Creator Fanaar's drones, the Initiation decides who we are partnered up with due to first contact in the initiation. To better compliment our abilities, I suggest seeking another of ourselves out once initiation begins."

"Acknowledged," Centurion responded, "Unfortunately, criteria of full team selection has yet to be identified. More reconnaissance is required."

"So, we just gotta find one of our own, and that's who we're partnered with our whole time here. That works," Pierson said.

"Let's just hope we don't get teamed up with someone useless, otherwise I'm up for anyone. What do you think Retribution?" Drosk asked.

Retribution responded, "My suggestion is to analyze the other combatants once we are partnered up: any one could be a potential ally if the Reapers come here, or a potential foe should they become indoctrinated."

"Dismal, as always, aren't we, Retty?" Tiara responded.

Retribution seemed to spark slightly more lightning than normal. "I said, my name is-"

"Wait! What are you doing?!"

Retribution and the others looked over and saw Yang dragging Ruby towards the girl with the bow from earlier.

Tiara then said to Retribution, with a slight teasing undertone, "Say, maybe you could introduce us to your friend now, huh?"

Retribution sighed, although he was going to go investigate anyways. So, he went towards them, the others following. They continued listening as they approached. "Hel-looooo! I believe you two may know each other?" they heard Yang say.

The girl in black then asked Ruby, "Aren't you... that girl that exploded?"

"Uh, yeah! My name's Ruby! But you can just call me Crater..." Ruby then stopped herself, embarrassed, "Actually, you can just call me Ruby."

"Okay." The girl then returned to her book.

Yang then asked Ruby, "What are you doing?"

"I don't know - **help me**!"

Yang then asked the girl, "So... What's your name?"

The girl in black responded simply, with, "Blake."

"Well, Blake, I'm Yang, Ruby's older sister! I like your bow!"

"Thanks!" The group could tell that Blake was getting irritated. For some reason, though, they kept back, staying back in case things went sour.

"It goes great with your... pajamas!" Yang awkwardly added.

"Right..." Blake responded with.

Ruby laughed a little, uncomfortably, while Yang asked, "Nice night, don't you think?"

"Yes - it's lovely! Almost as lovely as this book! That I will continue to read. As soon as you leave!"

"Yeah," Yang said, to Ruby, "This girl's a lost cause."

"What's it about?" Ruby abruptly asked Blake.

"Huh?" Blake asked, surprised.

Ruby asked again, "Your book. Does it have a name?"

"Well... i-it's about a man with two souls, each fighting for control over his body," Blake responded, in a less hostile manner.

Suddenly, Pierson stepped forward. "Sounds like the "Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde". Read that one a few times myself."

"And you would be...?" Yang asked.

"Pierson Chancellor, N7 Paladin. I'm a teammate of Retribution's."

"The bug-man?" Yang asked.

"Yeah...him..." Pierson answered.

"The bug-man, which is standing right here..." Retribution said, advancing. "Nice to see you again, Ruby, always a pleasure..." he added, politely.

"Well, he seems to like you: Plus one more friend, right Ruby?" Yang said, enthusiastically.

"Hah, hey there," Rukar said, stepping forward, the rest of the group approaching.

"Hey...more people...distracting me from by book..." Blake sarcastically remarked.

"Er...sorry..." Ruby said..."You know, I love books. Yang used to read to me every night before bed. Stories of heroes and monsters... They're one of the reasons I want to be a Huntress!"

"And why is that? Hoping you'll live happily ever after?" Blake actually laughed a little at that.

Ruby nodded. "Well, I'm hoping we all will. As a girl, I wanted to be just like those heroes in the books... Someone who fought for what was right, and protected people who couldn't protect themselves!"

"That would be nice..." Tiara stated.

"That's... very ambitious for a child." At that moment, her smile turned into a frown. "Unfortunately, the real world isn't the same as a fairy tale."

"Well, that's why we're here! To make it better."

Retribution smiled inwardly. This child's hope and ambition seemed to warm his heart. 'I hope she never has to face the terrors of the Reapers...and if she does have to...that she never loses that spirit...'

"Oh, I am so proud of my baby sister!" Yang them embraced her sister, which actually prompted an angry response from Ruby.

"Cut it out!" The hug quickly turned into a brawl, but Rukar quickly approached, reached into the dust cloud kicked up, and picked the 2 up by the backs of their shirts, both still flailing about, trying to fight the person who so suddenly lifted them off the ground. However...

"What in the world is going on over here?! Don't you realize some of us are trying to sleep?" Weiss exclaimed, marching over here.

Then, Yang noticed Weiss, and Weiss notice Ruby. "Oh, not you again!" Yang and Weiss exclaimed.

Retribution then cleared his throat, and spoke out, shocking and scaring Weiss, "Yes, it is getting a little loud for the others."

Ruby, wanting to calm things down, asked, "So...who are you guys? Never seen anyone like you before..."

Everyone removed their helmets (except Rukar, his was already off, and Lunn, for obvious reasons (he's a Quarian)). The 4 girls seemed shocked when they saw Tiara and Pierson were human.

"Retribution, Collector Adept working with the Geth Consensus."

"Platform-37x. Designation "Enigma". Geth Hunter Platform."

"Like I said earlier, but I'll repeat for the new girl, Pierson Chancellor, N7 Paladin of the Systems Alliance."

"Wraksan Rukar...that's Rukar of Clan Wraksan, if you're not used to "clan names first" format. Krogan Battlemaster of Clan Wraksan."

"Platform-174c. Designation "Centurion". Geth Juggernaut Platform."

"Tiara Rogers, N7 Demolisher of the Systems Alliance."

"Batarian Slasher Drosk Dosnahal, at your service."

"Lunn'Faanar vas Vera, of the Quarian Flotilla. Infiltrator Specialist."

With the aliens having introduced themselves, the 4 girls began their introductions.

"Well I'm Ruby, Ruby Rose."

"Yang Xiao Long, nice to meet you."

Blake was silent, before saying, "Blake Belladonna."

Weiss remained silent for a moment, but a glare from Retribution caused her to speak up. "Weiss Schnee, Heiress to the Schnee Dust Corporation."

"Now that introductions are out of the way, we should break off, so you could get some sleep," Pierson said.

"Yeah, and we're kinda keeping others up too..." Ruby stated.

Weiss then snapped, "Oh, _now_ you're on my side!"

"I was always on your side!"

Yang then stepped in with, "Yeah, what's your problem with my sister? She's only trying to be nice!"

"She's a hazard to my health!"

"**Enough!**" Retribution stated, freezing all 3 of those arguing, before they slinked off back to bed.

"Let's...go..." Pierson said.

As they left, Enigma looked back over, but, then, something caught his attention about Blake. It was like the feeling he had earlier, so he scanned her again. Blake noticed the cycloptic robot staring at her, however. "Is...something wrong?"

Enigma paused for a moment, before responding, "Negative. Just a feeling. Good night." He then turned to rejoin the others, as Blake blew out the candle she as using as a reading light.

* * *

The 8 aliens worked to obtain their weapons from the locker room. As soldiers, they found this a gross inconvenience, due to their need to have their weapons on them at all times. Ozpin had, earlier, promised to work out a separate arrangement for them, once initiation was finished. As the group worked to grab their weapons, their alien devices caught some weapons-crazy attention. "Oooo! What's that?!" Retribution sighed, seeing Ruby staring at his Particle Rifle.

"A weapon that was used by my people prior to..." he gestured to his body, indicating its insectoid state.

"Oh..." Ruby said..."And the rest of them?"

Retribution pulled out his Collector Sniper Rifle. "The weapons the twisted creations my race has been turned into use."

Ruby saddened at this comment. "What happened to them?"

Retribution contemplated whether to tell Ruby about the Reapers and what they did to the Collectors, but something held him back. 'No, she doesn't need to know this...not just yet. All it would do is upset her, adversely affect her performance in Initiation.'

"That's...a story for another time. We have something we need to get ready for, do we not?" Retribution finally said.

Ruby nodded. "Alright, but I'm getting that story out of you one of these days..." With that, Ruby left for her locker.

Retribution inwardly sighed. 'Once you hear it...you'll wish you hadn't,' he thought to himself. He finally gathered his weapons and moved onto the others. He found Enigma with Lunn at Lunn's locker, with Lunn looking through his arsenal of weapons. Lunn's arsenal consisted of Quarian Anti-Synthetic Weapons, and Geth Weaponary, so it wasn't like Lunn wouldn't be prepared for an attack by robots or a Geth revolt (or the arrival of the Reapers), but, without the Geth Hardware, he was less effective against organic targets. Now, however, it was giving Lunn an issue figuring out which to bring.

"Creator Faanar, I do not believe there will be synthetics in this "Emerald Forest". It would be wiser to-"

"We don't know what was brought with us, Enigma: we should bring something that would be effective against any Reaper Forces that may have followed through, or any robots that some hostile force may have deployed to ambush us."

"That is why I am suggesting bringing the Geth Hardware: it is equally affective against synthetic and organic, and is much more likely to-"

"Knock it off, Enigma! Why are you so against me bringing Quarian Weapons into this?!"

"Because of the lack of synthetics to make the Quarian Weapons effective," Retribution said, making himself known.

"Don't tell me you're with him on this!" Lunn said, exasperated.

"His reasoning is sound in this circumstance. Besides, it's not like you're leaving all your Quarian weapons here: the Geth never designed a Pistol, from what I recall, leaving a spot open for your Arc Pistol."

Lunn sighed. "I guess that's true," he said, gathering the Geth Weapons and his Arc Pistol.

Retribution then departed, Enigma following him. "I am curious as to how the natives are doing," Enigma stated.

"So, after hearing all of this, do you really think you're in a position to ask _her_ to be on your team?" they heard Weiss state.

They then heard Jaune state in reply, "I guess not... Sorry..."

The duo then heard an unknown female pipe in. "Actually, Jaune, I think you'd make a great leader!"

"D'oh, stop it!" Jaune said, bashfully.

Weiss, however, was less polite. "Seriously, please stop it. This kind of behavior should not be encouraged!"

Having had nearly enough of Weiss, Retribution was about to intervene, when, suddenly, Enigma stopped him. "Let's...just let this one play out its own way..."

Retribution sighed and complied, not even turning back when he heard the ***whoosh***, ***thunk***, and "I'm sorry!" from behind him. Moments later, the group rendezvoused with each other.

"You guys ready?" Rukar asked, cradling his Graal Spike Thrower.

Tiara answered, "As ready as we can be."

"Then let's go," Retribution said, and the group moved off, ready for Initiation.

* * *

**So, that's the chapter, next chapter will, of course, be Initiation. And I may try to add in...something else...Trying to make the other thing, however, which won't be linked to much from the actual RWBY series, will be difficult.  
**

**And don't hesitate to make reviews. I'd like to know what I'm doing wrong (or right)...**


	5. Chapter 4 - Priority: Emerald Forest I

**Hello again, it's time for our weekly installment of RWBY: The Reapers. For the first time, I'll be rolling out 2 arcs in one chapter (as such, the 2nd arc takes on its own name, under the "Armiger: Mission Name" format). The 2nd arc will follow Maxivius Sylmus preparing for the inevitable fight with the Reapers, gathering a new 4 person team.  
**

**I got quite a few reviews telling me of potential stuff I could do for the story. Here are some responses for the ones I got.  
**

**Mr Guest: Yes, I do plan for the ME Natives to have their Aura's unlocked. In fact, in later chapters, Retribution's Semblence will be used to _take control_ of some crises they run into...heheheh...**

**As for the Ice Dust thing, I like that. My original plan was to make modified thermal clips that use Ice Dust in them, in fact...Furthermore, ****the guys' weapons DO get re-designed. The only one I am willing to reveal so far: Ruby and Retribution will be modifying Retty's Collector Assault Rifle so it could shift into a toothed sword. Ruby can handle the mechanical weapons on her own (except maybe the Prothean Particle Rifle, may have her need help there)...she'll be needing Retribution's help with the organic Collector ones, though...  
**

**Finally, well, the thing you mentioned with Yang and Krogan...well...that would be telling, wouldn't it? ;) **

**But enough talk, now it's time for...**

**Priority: Emerald Forest I  
**

**/  
**

**Armiger: Wake Up**

* * *

The group of soldiers were waiting to be sent into the forest. Enigma had scanned the platforms on the team's way to them, and determined they would launch the group into the forest, so they were completely prepared to be launched into the air.

Once everyone was in position, Ozpin said, "For years, you have trained to become warriors...and in some cases, soldiers..." He then nodded in acknowledgement at the alien soldiers among the initiates. "And today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest."

Next, Goodwitch spoke. "Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of "teams". Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates... **today**."

"What? Ohhh..." Retribution heard Ruby groan nervously.

Ozpin then continued, "These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well." Again, Ruby groaned. "That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years."

"**Whaaaat?!**" the whole group heard Ruby shout. The soldiers had expected this, due to reconnaissance performed by their infiltrators, but it appears not everyone was so well-informed.

"After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path... or you **will** die," Ozpin continued, "You will be monitored and graded through the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. You will guard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?" Retribution noticed Jaune trying to get Ozpin's attention, but Ozpin seemed to ignore him, saying, "**Good**! Now, take your positions."

Finally the group was launched, and they watched as the others were launched as well, ending with Jaune, who was still trying to talk to Ozpin.

* * *

The group didn't waste any time getting prepared to land.

Retribution, being a Collector, unleashed his wings, stopping himself mid-flight, watching the others flyby, allowing him to get an aerial view of the area.

Enigma and Centurion compressed themselves, becoming akin to meteorites, bracing for impact as they shot towards the ground.

Pierson brought his Omni-Shield to bear, as he approached the forest, using the device to slow his fall, until he could grab a branch without his arm getting torn off.

Rukar had chosen to just treat this like a "Krogan Air Drop": aiming himself towards the forest...and dropping right on top of a Beowolf. Seeing the Grimm squish with a satisfying splat, Rukar noticed the Beowolf pack surrounding him. The Krogan pulled out his Spike Thrower, and, unleashing a battle-cry, engaged the larger force.

Tiara Rogers closed in on the forest, and started using her grenades to slow her descent, using their explosions to slow herself down (similar to how Ruby used Crescent Rose's recoil to do the same). Soon, she was able to grab a branch, and stop her descent.

Drosk took full advantage of his biotics, using them to slow his descent, while smashing any branches in front of him. He landed with a thud, and, pulling his AT-12 Raider shotgun out, he continued into the forest, although he noticed something falling nearby...

Lunn had the most difficult time coming up with a landing strategy. He eventually settled for re-routing power from his suit's power core to his shields, in order to limit damage to his environmental suit. He searched for somewhere he could grab a hold of, and, seeing a high-hanging branch, tried to reach out. However, moments after grabbing it, the branch snapped. Fortunately, it slowed Lunn's descent considerably, to the point to where the shields took the brunt of the impact. Shaken, he shook his head...only to notice an Ursa coming out of the underbrush. The large Grimm approached him. Lunn pulled out his Pulse Rifle, and was about to fire, but the Ursa's head was quickly impaled on a...harpoon? Lunn looked in the direction the harpoon seemed to come from, and..."So, looks like I get stuck with the Quarian...aw well, at least you're not useless," Drosk commented, "Come on, let's find the others.

* * *

Pain. That's all he felt, unending pain, as though he'd just gotten beaten up by a Krogan, then ran over with a Mako. Last thing he recalled, there was a Brute, then a bright flash, then...

'My team! By the spirits, where's my team?!' Maxivius mentally exclaimed. He looked around. Fortunately, his weapons, a Krysae Sniper Rifle, a Phaeston Assault Rifle, an M-12 Locust, and an M-3 Predator, were all there, intact. Nearby him, was also..."Reviane!" The Turian got up and ran over to his Asari teammate. Checking for a pulse, and relieved at finding one, he gathered his weapons, and also gathered her's, an M-13 Raptor, a Cerberus Harrier Assault Rifle, a Disciple Shotgun, an M-25 Hornet, an Acolyte Heavy Pistol, and M-358 Talon (he mentally reminded himself to ask her why she loved using Cerberus Weapons so much), as well. He quickly searched around, and found little in the way of civilization, although what appeared to be some kind of Earth Middle Ages Castle was just barely poking out of the hills nearby.

Then, his eyes fell on the corpse. It was the team's infiltrator, a young human male. He was cut down in the previous attack, but his weapons (M-97 Viper, M-23 Katana, and M-6 Carnifex) and armor were (mostly) undamaged. He gathered those up as well, and buried the corpse. It wasn't much, but it was the best he could do, right now.

After a few hours, the Asari Reviane started to stir. Maxivius was there by her side. "There you go, get up slowly, you've been out for hours."

"Wh-where are we?" the Asari asked, dazed and confused.

Maxivius responded, "I have no idea. I don't see the others, though, which is troubling."

"Then...maybe we should go find them," Reviane commented.

"Once we rest up," Maxivius stated, "Then we search for civilization. I saw some structure in that direction, meaning there should be something near that."

* * *

Retribution continued surveying the forest, looking for any sign of the others. As a Collector, he is able to fly, which gives him a bonus to maneuverability, as well as scouting out the surrounding area. His main hope is to find a member of his team, but, failing that, he might be able to put up with Ruby: having observed her abilities first-hand, he decided she would be the next best person to partner with, should his team be taken.

Suddenly, he heard something, a snarling. Looking below, he saw a pack of Grimm, identified as "Beowolves", moving in one direction. Following from above, he discovered what had their attention: a compacted Geth Hunter. Enigma. As the Beowolves surrounded the Geth, he unfolded, before pulling out his Pulse Rifle. Pulling out his Particle Rifle, Retribution struck a member of the pack from above, getting Enigma's attention. "Collector Retribution! It is good to see you have arrived. I require assistance down here!"

"That you do, synthetic. Hold on, I will strike from above, you take any that try to charge you from down there!"

"Acknowledged!" The 2 experienced Veterans attacked the Beowolves from 2 different vectors, making the Grimm not stand a chance against their combined assault. Soon, the whole pack was down, and the duo were able to converse. "It appears we managed to survive that. I will try to link up with the others' Omni-Tools so we can coordinate more effectively."

"Negative, Synthetic. I believe the point of this trial is to see how well we do on our own. Hold off on linking up, until we have regrouped with some of the others, and then only with those we've regrouped with."

"Acknowledged. Now, which way?"

Retribution pointed to the North. "I spotted what appeared to be ancient ruins in that direction. If my theory is correct, then the relics might be there. We must make haste to there."

"Acknowledged."

* * *

Pierson was dazed by his landing: he'd just plowed through multiple tree branches before snatching a branch to slow himself down. He definitely was going to need some rest before he could continue through the Initiation...

...Meaning he certainly wasn't ready about the pack of Beowolves that surrounded him. "Son of a bitch..." the N7 groaned. He pulled out his N7 Hurricane and brought his Omni-Shield to bear. However, he knew that even with the Omni-Shield AND his shields online, all these Beowolves will overwhelm him.

Fortunately, before he even had to engage, he heard a battle cry sound...a very familiar one. "RAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" ***SMACK*** Suddenly, a large form slammed into one of the Beowolves, and drew the others' attention. Attacking the more immediate threat, the Beowolves took their attention off of Pierson, and changed it to...

"Rukar! Is it going to be a regular thing, saving my ass from these Grimm?" Pierson quipped.

"Ah, shut up and fire on them! No fun if you sit out and don't shoot too..." Rukar said, plowing through the Grimm with both Shotgun blasts and Biotics. It was only a minute or so before the whole pack was gone.

That was when Pierson noticed Rukar had something draped over his shoulder...which he took and started biting chunks out. "Is that a...Grimm's _arm_?! I thought Grimm meat was toxic!"

"It is?" Rukar asked. He took another bite of the arm's flesh, and sampled it for a moment. "Meh, if they think THIS is toxic, they've never been to Tuchanka."

"Whatever, have you seen the others?" Pierson asked.

"You mean our guys? No...But, I DID see that Blake girl and Yang take out a pair of Grimm they called "Ursas". Damn, when I saw Yang beat up that one Ursa...MAN!"

Pierson saw the look in Rukar's eyes, one he recognized immediately, and saw the perfect opportunity. "Yeah yeah, we'll talk about this later, lover-boy, now let's get moving!"

"Lover-boy, why I-gah, nevermind..." The duo then left the clearing they were in...but not before Rukar ripped a couple arms off the Beowolf corpses and draped them over his shoulder.

* * *

Tiara landed softly, thanks to the effects of her grenades slowing her descent. However, she tore apart the trees on her way down...and it was loud...As a result...she was surprised when there were no Grimm at her landing site. She looked around, and listened, and soon heard the familiar ***pew-pew-pew-pew*** of a Geth Spitfire. Remembering only one of the group had a Spitfire, Tiara rushed off in the direction, so see Centurion confronting a trio of Ursi...or rather a larger group, of which only a trio was all that was left. One of them charged the Geth Juggernaut, only to have itself run face-first into a Siege Pulse. It was stunned, as Centurion activated its Omni-Tool, and impaled the Grimm's head on it.

However, 2 more Ursi remained."Screw it," Tiara muttered to herself, and she launched some Homing Grenades from her Omni-Tool. The grenades slammed into the Ursi, distracting them, as Centurion unleashed his Spitfire into them, dropping them.

"N7 Rogers, you have arrived. It appears we are to be a team for the rest of our deployment here."

"It appears so, let's go find the others, they might have teamed up by now."

* * *

Retribution and Enigma managed to locate Rukar and Pierson (and Enigma unsuccessfully trying to use the toxic nature of Grimm flesh to convince Rukar to stop eating Beowolf arms), and the quartet continued forward until they found the ruin...and got there in time to see Ruby nearly killed by a large scorpion-like Grimm. Retribution was about to launch, in what he knew was a vain attempt to save her...just to see Weiss shoot forward and stop the Grimm, encasing its stinger in ice. He was, by that point, close enough to hear the exchange between Weiss and Ruby.

"You are **so** childish!_"_ Weiss stated

"Weiss...?" was Ruby's reply.

"_And_ dim-witted, _and_ hyperactive, and don't even get me started on your fighting style." Retribution thought that he needed to put Weiss in her place again, but before he could, however, Weiss shocked him with her next statement. "And I suppose I can be a bit... _difficult_..." Retribution almost didn't believe Weiss made that concession, but she did. Retribution decided to stay out of it this time. "But if we're going to do this, we're going to have to do this together. So if _you_ quit trying to show off, I'll be... _nicer_.

Ruby sadly replied, "I'm not trying to show off. I want you to know I can do this."

"You're fine." It was then that Retribution decided that maybe Weiss either learned her lesson...or, more likely, he realized, she was just showing a different side of herself. As Weiss walked away from Ruby, and noticed Retribution (recoiling in fear as she did so), he merely gave her an approving nod, and returned to the others (earning a sigh of relief from Weiss).

Finally, Retribution noticed Yang run towards Ruby and hug her. "So happy you're okay!"

'You and me both,' Retribution thought. Finally, a group of 4 appeared from the other tree-line, as Retribution's group appeared as well.

"Glad everyone made it," Tiara commented.

"Same here," Pierson replied. Suddenly, the avian Grimm flew overhead.

Enigma analyzed the situation. "Warning: Avian Grimm detected making another pass. And the arachnid Grimm is attempting to break out of the ice prison made by Weiss. I advise the rest of us grab our relics, and, as humans say, "Get the hell out of here"."

"Yeah, there's no sense in dilly-dallying. Our objective is right in front of us," Weiss concurred.

Ruby then said, "She's right. Our mission is to grab an artifact and make it back to the Cliffs. There's no point in fighting these things."

"Acknowledged," Centurion replied.

Ruby, Jaune, Retribution, Rukar, Centurion, and Lunn approached the relics. Ruby grabbed a White Knight Piece, like one that Yang had on her, while Jaune grabbed a White Rook, like the one they saw on a girl with orange hair. Retribution and Rukar grabbed Black Knights, while Centurion and Lunn grabbed Black Rooks.

"Time we left!" said a young man with mostly-black hair, with a magenta strip.

"Right. Let's go," Ruby concurred, leading the group. Everyone, except Yang and Rukar moved to leave.

Blake passed the duo, but stopped upon noticing them. "What is it?"

The trio watched as both Ruby and Retribution, stopped, Ruby on a rock, and they both gestured for the group to follow. Both Yang and Rukar looked proud. "Nothing..." Yang said.

"Yeah, nothing at all..." Rukar said, as the 2 continued forward, before being followed by Blake.

* * *

The duo rested for an hour or so, before finally beginning their trek to, where they hoped was, a nearby city. During that time, the duo was able to gather their equipment, repair it to the best of their abilities, take inventory of their thermal clips, among other preparations. They'd also packed up their deceased comrade's old gear, hoping they might be able to make use of it while here. They looked around the forest, occasionally coming to a spot where they found the corpses of dead creatures: black-furred creatures with skull-like "masks" on their heads. Many of them looked like mythological creatures from Earth, 'Werewolves' Maxivius thought they were called, while others resembled Earth creatures called "Bears". They were all dead, and while some had wounds that looked like swords and other bladed weapons had killed them, one particular corpse-filled clearing got Maxivius's attention immediately.

Maxivius knelt down, and pulled a flechette out of one of the werewolf creatures. He recognized it. "Someone was using a Graal Spike Thrower here..." He then looked closer and noticed something else. "And tearing these creatures limbs off..." He then noticed a few half-eaten arms around as well..."Then eating them...This DEFINITELY looks like Wraksan Rukar's work."

"Do you think he's here?" Reviane asked.

Maxivius respond, "I do, and if he's here, that means the other 2 teams might also be here, as well. Unfortunately, I also worry about what that means is also here..."

"What?" Reviane asked, nervously.

Before Maxivius could answer, something came from the forest, answering his question for him...a groaning, shambling, human-like form covered in bright blue cybernetics. "Husks! Take them down!" Maxivius called to Reviane. The duo pulled out their assault rifles and fired on the Reaper-controlled constructs. They charged at the duo, but didn't make it far.

"What are Husks doing here?!" Reviane asked, frightened.

Maxivius could understand why Reviane was acting this way: she was young compared to the typical Asari Vanguard. The war forced younger and younger individuals from each race to join their military. However, she was effective, when need-be, so he didn't complain. Now, they're in what appears to be another world, maybe another universe, and they are still fighting the Reapers. The implications of that were...disconcerting. "I don't know, but our plan remains unchanged: we MUST find civilization, now more than ever!"

"Ok, but what are we going to do when we get there? I honestly doubt that, if this is a new world, they'll believe us!"

"I see your point, which means we should try gathering a team. We'll find out what we can about this world, and then find a means to rebuild our team. Maybe, we can ready ourselves to hold off the Reapers, until help arrives. Now, let's move!"

* * *

The teams fled through the forest, until they reached what appeared to be some ancient ruins. Before they could try to reach the ruins, however, the Nevermore perched itself up top, blocking their path. "Well, _that's_ great!" Yang said, annoyed.

"Ah, man, **run**!" Jaune yelled.

Retribution readied to run, but Enigma grabbed him and Pierson. Rukar stopped when Pierson was grabbed, and Centurion did similar to Tiara and Drosk, Lunn stopping in response. "Get down!" Enigma said, pulling Retribution and Pierson into a bush. Everyone hid, and they heard a thumping, as the Grimm charged the native groups, 5 figures appeared in the forest...5 familiar figures...

"Ah, **son of a BITCH**!" Pierson said...as 5 Reaper Brutes lumbered from the forest.

"That answers the question of whether they followed us or not..." Rukar said.

"We must prevent them from reaching the others!" Retribution announced, "They have enough issues with those Grimm being there, without having to face a foe they never have before."

"Acknowledged," Enigma said, targetting the Brutes.

"You know there's more than we can normally take," Pierson said, "Even if Maxivius and his team were still here, we'd be outmatched."

"We have no choice!" Retribution declared, "These kids have never faced the Reapers before, and we can't let these thing get them!" Retribution immediately deployed his wings, pulled out his Particle Rifle, and charged. Rukar followed shortly after, with Enigma unslinging his Javelin.

Pierson saw the other quartet of soldiers move out to engage the Brutes, and said to himself, "This is the stupidest course of action, ever...of all time..." before pulling out his Valkyrie and engaging.

The 2 team charged the cluster of Reaper Brutes, which immediately struck back. The pairs selected for Initiation split up among the Brutes, Retribution attacking one with Enigma striking from afar, Pierson and Rukar engaging another, Centurion and Tiara laying fire into another, and Drosk attacking the last with Lunn sniping at it.

Lunn used his tactical scan and sent the information to Drosk, who fired off Warps at the Brute, giving Lunn an opening, allowing him to snipe at the Brute. It took a few minutes of dipping and dodging on Drosk's part, and the Brute succumbed.

Centurion advanced on the Brute he and Tiara were fighting, draining energy from it, while fighting it in melee. This gave Tiara an opening, allowing the use of Homing Grenades on the Brute. Fortunately, Centurion, thanks to the grenade support, was able to beat the Brute enough, to allow him to unload with the Spitfire, finishing the Brute off.

Rukar unleashed Carnage from his Graal Spike Thrower, as Pierson utilized Snap Freeze, to weaken the Brute's armor, a minute or so of this resulted in the Brute's armor nearly shattering, allowing the duo to finish it off.

Retribution buzzed through the air, striking at the Brute with his Particle Rifle, while also launching Seeker Swarms and Dark Spheres, causing damage to it, while Enigma struck the Brute from a distance. Both took down their Brute easily, faster than the others. However, as Retribution landed to recover, the final Brute, which had been waiting for one team to stop, charged in, knocking Retribution to the ground. The other teams were unable to disengage to help him, and Enigma wouldn't be powerful enough to stop it. The Brute raised its arm to crush Retribution...

...And a red blur slashed at it, knocking it away. Retribution, after a moment, got a fix on what struck. "Ruby?! What are you doing?! Get the others out of here, these foes are beyond you!"

"No way!" Ruby replied, "You're our friends too, so we're going to help you!"

As Ruby said this, Weiss shot in and stabbed at the feet of the Brute, freezing the ground around its feet, immobilizing it. Then, Blake arrived, slashing and swiping with dual blades, before Yang appeared, slamming her fist into the Brute's head, breaking it from the ice, but staggering it. Then, SMGs fired, Ren, the young man with black hair from earlier, jumped over the Brute, peppering it with fire. Then, the orange-haired girl, which Retribution's group overheard her name being Nora, came in, smashing the Brute in the face with a large hammer. Then, Jaune and Pyrrha appeared, and while Jaune blocked a blow from the Brute with his shield, Pyrrha slashed the Brute with her sword, changed her sword into a gun, and shot the Brute in the face. Finally, Ruby rushed forward again, wrapped her scythe's blade around the Brute's neck...

...And fired, forcing the scythe through and decapitating the Brute, killing it. Retribution was shocked, he knew these kids were good...but to take down a Reaper Brute with little support from his men...'Yes...they must be the ones...' Retribution realized, 'They must be the ones to aid us...when the time comes...'

Ruby then came over, and held a hand out to Retribution, who realized he was still on the ground. Taking the hand, Ruby helped Retribution to his feet. Retribution cleared his throat. "Let's...get back to Beacon: who knows how many more of those things are hidden in this forest..."

"What WERE those things, anyways?" Ruby asked.

Retribution gave her a serious stare. "You remember what I said about my race's slayers, the ones that twisted us into what we are now?" He gestured at the Brutes, when Ruby gave a nervous nod. "These...are more of their pawns...We must move, Ozpin must be informed, once Initiation is finished."

* * *

"Russel Thrush. Cardin Winchester. Dove Bronzewing. Sky Lark. The four of you retrieved the black bishop pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team CRDL, led by... Cardin Winchester!"

The groups managed to make it back, and now Professor Ozpin was announcing the teams. The soldiers from another universe had suspected the chess piece relics had to do with the teams, and now their suspicions were confirmed.

Next, Jaune, Nora, Pyrrha, and Ren approached. "Jaune Arc. Lie Ren. Pyrrha Nikos. Nora Valkyrie. The four of you retrieved the white rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team JNPR. Led by... Jaune Arc!"

"Huh? L-Led by...?" Jaune sputtered.

"Congratulations, young man," Ozpin said.

Retribution would have raised an eyebrow at this, had he any to raise. He never suspected Jaune to be the one to become his team's leader. However, he remembered what Pyrrha said about Jaune being the one to have come up with how they defeated the "Deathstalker", the Scorpion Grimm the team encountered. He had a laugh, however, when Pyrrha gave Jaune a friendly shoulder bump, Jaune was knocked flat on his butt.

After they cleared the stage, next came Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang. "Blake Belladonna. Ruby Rose. Weiss Schnee. Yang Xiao Long. The four of you retrieved the white knight pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team RWBY. Led by... Ruby Rose!"

As Weiss looked surprised, and Yang lunged and hugged her sister, Retribution applauded with the rest of the people there. He never expected Ruby to make team leader either...although, after thinking, he realized it was possible: she came up with the plan to kill the avian Grimm, or "Nevermore" as he was told, even performing the finishing blow.

Next up, was one of their groups that walked up on the stage. "Drosk Dosnahal. Platform-174c Centurion. Tiara Rogers. Lunn'Fanaar vas Vera. The four of you retrieved the black rook pieces. From this day forwards, you will work together as Team CTDL. Led by...Centurion."

"Updating Team Leader Protocols now. Engaging Tactical Analysis Procedures," Centurion commented, readying himself for duty. Lunn seemed shocked that he'd be working under a Geth, although Tiara and Drosk looked more amused.

Finally, Retribution got up, and his team got up on the stage. "Pierson Chancellor. Platform-37x Enigma. Wraksan Rukar. Collector Retribution. The four of you retrieved the black knight pieces. From this day forwards, you will work together as Team REPR. Led by...Retribution."

Retribution's eyes intensified in glow: this time, it was in surprise. He was team leader? He was the oldest, sure, but...he was leader? "I will endeavor to not let you down, sir," was all Retribution could say. He looked out at the crowd, and saw Teams RWBY and JNPR in particular cheering. He would especially see Ruby cheering for him. If he had a visible mouth, he'd smile.

"It looks like things are shaping up to be an... interesting year," Ozpin said, and, soon, most everyone left the room, except for Teams CTDL, REPR, and RWBY. Retribution nodded at Centurion, who led his team out, leaving Ozpin alone with Teams REPR and RWBY. "Is something the matter?" Ozpin asked them.

"More than you know," Retribution answered.

Ozpin then nodded, then looked at Team RWBY. "I believe this may require you lea-"

"They have a right to know, Professor Ozpin, because, like it or not, they're involved now." Retribution took a deep breath, then began. "Do you recall the enemy we said we were fighting before we came here?"

"Yes, you called them the "Reapers". Why do you mention them?" Ozpin then seemed to realize something. "Does it have to do with those creatures you encountered in the forest?"

Retribution nodded. "They're constructs known as Brutes, made from Krogan and Turians. Those are Reaper troops. Even if not in their own presence, the Reapers' influence is HERE!"

* * *

**Now, how's THAT for a chapter. Yes, I spared the Asari Vanguard, Reviane Besus, and made her the first person in Maxivius's new team. Now, I will not reveal who, but the other 2 people WILL be Remnant natives, one a character from RWBY canon (not saying who), and a RWBY-based OC. I'll leave it to you guys to guess who the canon character is...**

**Furthermore, my issue now is figuring out food for Maxivius and Lunn. I mean, in Mass Effect canon, for those who don't know, Turians and Quarians (which are what those 2 are respectively) are dextro-amino acid-based races, while most everything else (including humans) are levo-amino acid-based (meaning Rukar, a Krogan; Drosk, a Batarian; Reviane, an Asari; and I THINK Retribution, a Collector/ex-Prothean, have nothing to worry about), so Turians and Quarians can't exactly go to Beacon's cafeteria to grab something to eat, unless they offer Dextro Food.  
**

**So, that's the chapter, don't forget to tell me how you liked it...**

**...**

**...Oh, right.**

** thermalsnipern7: Good idea with the Reapers in Emerald Forest, might just go with it...LOL!**


	6. Chapter 5 - Priority: Beacon II

**Ok, here comes chapter 5. I'm sorry this is a short chapter, TBH, because I'm not sure what to do, beyond the class stuff.  
**

**Now, though, for some reviews...**

**Mr Guest: That would be interesting, but I plan her interactions to be mostly with Centurion...also, her intro is around her canon one...**

**mastermind: Well...looks like the critics have arrived. To respond to your concern, for the Out-of-story explanation: Need something to give this whole story some semblance of urgency. White Fang's all well and good, but in the end, when the ME characters get their Auras unlocked and find their Semblences (and it IS a matter of "when", not "if"), the White Fang...to be frank, will be child's play...  
**

**As for the In-Universe explanation...it could be that, since the creatures of the ME universe have arrived in the RWBY universe, onto Remnant, the "Organic Hordes" have "contaminated" Remnant, requiring the planet to be cleansed...**

**...I DID name the Reaper that attacks Remnant "Purge"...**

**Priority: Beacon II**

* * *

Teams REPR and RWBY, as well as Professor Ozpin remained in the auditorium, the words uttered by Retribution a few minutes prior still resonating in everyone's minds.

_Those are Reaper troops. Even if not in their own presence, the Reapers' influence is HERE!_

It took a while before someone said anything, and when they did, it was, of course, Ozpin. "It might be wise if you start from the beginning; what EXACTLY are these Reapers, and what threat do they pose."

"To let you know what they are, and what they do, you must first go into the DISTANT past...their creation," Retribution began, "Millions, maybe billions, of years ago, the galaxy was ruled by one race, known only as Leviathan. The Leviathan, in terms of appearance and abilities, greatly resemble the Reapers, and it was their belief that they were the apex life form, all life meant to serve them. However, the other races began building synthetics, which turned on their masters. Many races died, so the Leviathan believed they had to do something. In their own words, "Tribute does not flow from a dead race". Therefore, they created a synthetic known as the Intelligence, designed to, determine a solution to the problem. The Intelligence-"

"Wait!" Ruby called, "If the problem was caused by synthetics turning on their masters...why'd they make a synthetic to solve the problem?"

"We don't know: that kind of erroneous logic is one of many things the Reapers inherited from their creators, as you will soon learn," Retribution answered, "The Intelligence expanded across the stars, observing races, gaining information, figuring out the best way to fulfill its directive: the preservation of organic life...and when it found everything it needed...it betrayed the Leviathan. Using their own organic matter, the Intelligence created the first Reaper, the one now called Harbinger. In the sense of their twisted logic, they preserve life by melting it down and turning it into Reapers."

"That is COMPLETELY stupid, you weren't kidding when you said their logic was "erroneous", you were UNDERSTATING it, in fact!" Weiss exclaimed.

"He has a tendency to do that," Pierson elaborated, before Retribution continued.

"They return every 50,000 years looking to harvest every space-capable race that has arisen, and they continued this cycle for a long time."

"All those races melted down into Reapers...that's a lot of Reapers..." Yang said.

"Indeed. My race wasn't always the Collectors: we were once a proud race, called the Protheans. We were, as you would say, "Top Dog", in our cycle. The Reapers destroyed us, and those who weren't killed were either melted into Reapers...or were twisted and transformed, becoming the insectoid monstrosity you see before you today. Most Collectors remain under Reaper control. However, weeks ago, Commander Jane Shepard, a human war hero and Citadel Council Spectre noted for her noble and just way of solving problems, made contact with the surviving Leviathan. Their contribution to the war effort was the releasing of any indoctrinated individuals or husks in proximity to their artifacts...including Collectors. Most Collectors were destroyed when Leviathan severed their connection to Harbinger...I was one of the lucky few to survive, and gain a free mind. All of us that were freed joined the war effort: fighting the Reapers that once controlled us, in vengeance for our fallen race. In Prothean Society, there were people who represented some trait: Avatars we called them. There were ones for many virtues in society. Upon that day, any and all Protheans "awakened" by the Leviathan became an Avatar of Vengeance..."

"THAT'S why you call yourself Retribution!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Indeed. As I said, I intend to deliver Retribution unto the Reapers. As with the other "Awakened" Collectors, I am an Avatar of Vengeance: the anger of a dead race demanding the blood of our slayers."

"So, the Reapers were created to preserve life, but, instead, they melt it down to make more Reapers..." Ozpin mulled, "What of those...things your two teams, as well as Teams JNPR and CTDL, encountered in Emerald Forest?"

"Brutes," Pierson explained, "Just one of the more powerful of the soldiers the Reapers created using races from our galaxy. That particular monstrosity is the impossible combination of a Turian and Krogan."

"Why is it impossible?" Yang asked.

Enigma explained. "Turians are Dextro-Amino Acid-based. Krogan are Levo-Amino Acid-based. Normally, these are incompatible. Therefore, implants are required to prevent organ rejection."

Yang then sarcastically remarked, "That doesn't sound painful AT ALL..."

Ruby nervously asked, "Can they...do that to humans too?"

Retribution stared at Ruby for a second, and those good at seeing through such unusual faces to see what they're feeling (such as Ozpin) could see the sympathy in his eyes. "Unfortunately, Ruby, yes..." Retribution brought up an Omni-Tool, which then showed a hologram of a human, skin turned grey and covered in blue implants. "The Reaper Husks actually called "Husk", due to being the first encountered, years before the actual invasion, Human Husks are the most common in the Reaper forces...typically serving as cannon fodder." Retribution's voice sounded like he was trying to take it easy...it didn't stop Ruby (not to mention the rest of Team RWBY) from looking horrified.

"That's-" Ruby began.

Yang, however, interrupted, "-HORRIBLE!"

"It is..." Pierson said, "You don't know how many friends I've had to kill, due to them being huskified. My family's gone too. Tiara's the last loved one I have...she's a childhood friend."

"Oh no..." Ruby said, now sorry for the soldier.

"We can supply you with information for you that will go into further detail...I believe we should go get settled in," Enigma said, noticing the reactions of Team RWBY to this information.

"That might be wise," Ozpin said. With that, everyone left.

As Retribution moved to his team's room, however, he was intercepted. "Hey, Retribution."

The Collector turned to face the person who followed him. "What is it, Ruby?"

"Is that all true? What those "Reapers" did to you?" she asked. Her expression was that of sadness and concern.

Retribution's eyes dimmed a little, before replying, "...Yes..." Then, Ruby came forward and hugged him. "Wha-what are you doing?"

Ruby stopped hugging and looked up at his face. "Just showing that, even if we don't know what they did to you fully, you're not alone here. My team and I are here for you."

Retribution's eyes glowed brighter for a moment, as he pondered it. "Thank you...Ruby..." he said, as he departed.

* * *

Being military, some of them woke up at around 6...being robots or genetically-engineered soldier creatures, the others never went to sleep. When the group was fully awake, they went to the cafeteria. Those that ate (or, rather, ate Levo Food), got something to eat, and then the group went to class. Pierson, Tiara, and Drosk wore the uniforms that were provided to them, but the others didn't, namely due to the Geths' proclivities to not wearing clothes, there not being a uniform in Rukar's size (and body-type), Lunn being unable to remove his usual suit due to risk of contamination, and Retribution's tiny vestigial limbs on his torso making wearing a uniform impossible.

When the group finally reached Professor Port's class, the teacher responds to their entrance. "Wow, you came early! Shouldn't you get breakfast?"

"I already went to get breakfast," Pierson said.

"Me too," Tiara responded.

"Got myself a BIG helping," Rukar added.

"Also did I," Drosk responded.

Port then looked at the other 4. "And you?"

"I...can't eat your food: Dextro, remember?" Lunn reminded the Professor. All the professors were already informed of Lunn's different biology, and therefore his inability to consume the food from the cafeteria.

"My kind were modified so we don't HAVE to eat every day...and I already ate yesterday, so that's AT LEAST another week or so, before I start feeling hungry again," Retribution reminded.

Port nodded in acknowledgement, before turning to the 2 Geth. "And you two..."

Enigma turned to the others, flashing his targeting sensor again. "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, bolt brain..." Rukar commented.

Centurion and Enigma looked at each other, before Centurion turned to the Professor. "These platforms do not require nourishment."

"Oh, right, robots, my apologies, forgot," the Professor said.

The 2 Geth looked at each other again, and Enigma blinked his targeting sensor...again.

"Hahah...laugh it up, flashlight-head..." Tiara sarcastically remarked.

"Alright, alright, we'll just wait for the other students to arrive," Port said, as Teams REPR and CTDL sat down in their seats.

After about an hour, the teams watched as the other student piled in. Just before the class began, Teams RWBY and JNPR rushed in, as though in a panic, just barely in time.

* * *

"Monsters! _Deeeemons_... Prowlers of the night! Yes, the creatures of Grimm have many names, but I merely refer to them as **prey**! Ha-ha! Uhhhh... And you shall too, upon graduating from this prestigious academy! Now, as I was saying: Vale, as well as the other three kingdoms, are safe havens in an otherwise treacherous world! Our planet is absolutely _teeming_ with creatures that would love nothing more than to tear you to pieces! And that's where we come in. Huntsmen! Huntresses...Individuals who have sworn to protect those who cannot protect themselves! From what, you ask? Why, the _very world_! That is what you are training to become. But first: A story. A tale of a young, handsome man... Me! When I was a boy..." Port said. Already, Teams REPR and CTDL could see where this class was going: the teacher just bantering on about his own time as a huntsman, BARELY giving a second thought about actually TEACHING.

Tiara noticed Centurion staring off into space. "Uhhh...What're you doing?" the N7 asked.

"Checking this world's analog of the Extranet for the information we _should_ be learning in this class..." the massive Geth Juggernaut quietly stated to his partner, "If I find anything useful, I would be happy to upload it to yours and the others' Omni-Tools."

"I don't think we-" Tiara looked on at the Professor.

"And I slashed at it with my weapon, but it just kept coming-"

"On second though, I think we may need it," she finally answered the Geth.

"Acknowledged."

"See if you can send it to Teams RWBY and JNPR's scrolls too," Pierson said, one row above them, "I don't think they're learning much either." The group looked at them, with only Weiss paying attention, with Ruby doodling, and Blake and Yang laughing.

"Ah-heh-hem!" Port said towards Team RWBY, and only continued the story when they began paying attention. "In the end, the Beowolf was no match for my _sheer_ tenacity, and I returned to my village with the beast in captivity and my head held high, celebrated as a hero!"

"Right..." Tiara said quietly, and sarcastically.

"The moral of this story? A true Huntsman must be honorable!"

"Is eating someone who hinders you honorable?" Rukar quietly asked Pierson, who just facepalmed.

"A true Huntsman must be dependable!"

"Sniper-precision dependable, or repetitive dependable?" Enigma asked, only to be ignored.

"A true Huntsman must be strategic, well-educated, and wise!"

"Hey! Everything your kind usually aren't!" Lunn joked at Drosk. The Batarian merely rolled his eyes: he was slightly offended...but knew this was true...

"So, who among you believes themselves to be the _embodiment_ of these _traits_?"

"I do, sir!" Weiss stated out loud, anger in her voice. Retribution would have rolled his eyes, if he had pupils.

"Well, then, let's find out! Step forward, and face your opponent!" Port said, revealing a cage...with a Grimm in it.

"Ah, are you _fucking_ kidding me?!" Rukar said aloud, "I wanna fight something!" The Krogan pouted.

Weiss just rolled her eyes at the frog-headed alien, and left to change into her combat gear.

"I'll...see if I have something for you to fight when we're done here, Mr. Wraksan," Port said, careful to remember the Krogan "First Name" was technically their "Last Name".

* * *

The group had watched the fight between Weiss and the Boarbatusk, with Ruby shouting support from the sidelines...only pissing Weiss off. Then, as though trying to get everyone's minds off it, Professor Port pulled out an Ursa for Rukar to fight. Rukar slaughtered the Grimm, and spent the rest of the afternoon with torn-off Ursa limbs over his shoulders, snacking in class. The teachers were initially worried about the toxins the Krogan was eating, but after remembering the near-hundred Beowolf limbs the Krogan devoured during initiation, they had to accept that maybe Krogan were used to eating toxic food, and they shouldn't worry about the veteran Battlemaster eating meat in large quantities that would, in a human, poison them with just a few bites.

Port's reaction to the whole incident left the class walking out of the classroom in laughter. "I...know I said that Huntsmen and Huntresses treat the Grimm as prey, but this _isn't_ what I had in mind..."

Rukar's response didn't help make things serious. "Yeah, yeah, hey, can you take that Boarbatusk that Weiss killed, and make it into Boarbatusk Bacon?"

After a sweatdrop from Professor Port came what sealed the hilarity of the situation. "I...I don't know...but I can try..."

The class was just coming out of laughter when they arrived at the cafeteria later that day, Rukar still dragging a half-eaten Ursa leg with him. Teams REPR and CTDL were joined by Teams RWBY and JNPR. Jaune started the conversation. "Ruby and them told us about those...things...we fought in the forest...are they really able to kill all life in the galaxy?"

"Yes," Retribution plainly said. 'No point in sugar-coating it,' he thought.

"That's...horrifying..." Ren plainly said.

Pyrrha then said, "If they're that bad..." She couldn't finish.

Retribution could see the fear on Teams JNPR's and RWBY's faces. He decided to act. He remembered when Javik, the last true Prothean, was awakened and came to the Citadel, and, thanks to Commander Jane Shepard, gave the civilians on the Citadel an inspiring speech. He decided to do similar, taaking the speech, and modifying it for use here. "But you faced a Reaper spawn! One of the toughest, and are still alive! If the students here have half your skill, and the graduates and full-time Huntsmen AND Huntresses even more, then we may have hope of stopping the Reapers on this world! And even now, there is still potential in you! You haven't yet fully grasped what you are capable of! Find your potential! Seize it! And you can become the sword and the shield that drives the Reapers back and tell them that your world will not be theirs! Despair is the Reapers' greatest weapon: deprive them of it, and their days are numbered! You are alive! We all are! And we WILL fight back, when the Reapers come!"

He inwardly smiled at the looks of increasing confidence from the teams. After a moment, Ruby was the first to speak. "That...was...AWESOME!"

Suddenly, they heard crying. The group looked and saw one of the students, Cardin, they recognized, pulling on the ear of a Faunus. 'Not here too...' Retribution inwardly groaned. "Shall we?" he asked the team.

"We shall," Rukar said, grabbing his Ursa leg, and all of Team REPR got up, and walked over to Cardin and team CRDL.

"Yeah, yeah, what do you-EEK!" Cardin literally screamed like a girl when he found himself picked up off the bench by a frog-headed alien with one hand on the back of his shirt and the other hand clenched to a half-eaten Ursa leg.

"I hope you realize how bad this situation is for you," Retribution said, "You just got caught bullying by a team of which 3 of the 4 members are of races actively discriminated against, either past or present, in their own universe. And the bullying was discriminatory in nature. Like I said, I hope you realize how bad this looks." Cardin nodded. "You will not mess with this child, or any other Faunus, again, for they _will_ tell us, and we _will_ respond..._appropriately_..." Despite the Collector's unchanging expression, Cardin could sense the malevolent nature of how Retribution said "appropriately"...he could only fearfully nod in response.

"And by "appropriately"," Pierson clarified, "We'll let him eat you." Cardin looked where the N7 nodded his head...at the frog-headed alien holding him up and eating an Ursa leg. After hearing what Pierson said, Rukar stared at Cardin...and licked his chops...

Cardin's eyes bugged out, and, once put down, he fled faster than any human (barring Ruby) should be able to run, his team following a moment later. Retribution approached the girl. "What is your name?"

"Velvet Scarlatina," the Faunus girl answered.

"Tell us if that man messes with you again. We will deal with him," the Collector responded, and Team REPR departed. They returned to their table, to see the expressions of Teams RWBY and JNPR to be very diverse. Yang was the first to speak.

"You guys...are awesome! I know not to mess with you now!" Yang said, smiling.

Enigma noticed something, however: Blake was looking away, as though in thought. Then, a thought struck the Geth: he scanned Blake, one more time, this time, a genetics scan, and compared it to several other scans, Faunus and Human, he'd taken of this world's inhabitants. The results were startling, and Enigma finally realized what was off about her...

* * *

Blake wandered up to the roof of the school, in thought over what happened earlier today. Other than the slightly-disturbed feeling she got when she saw that Rukar was more than willing to eat a human, she was feeling...good...over seeing just how much Team REPR cared about the Faunus, something she was sure Team CTDL probably shared.

Once on the roof, she began to think, sitting down and removing her bow, revealing her cat-like ears. Suddenly, a voice spoke out, making her jump. "So, at long last, the secret is revealed."

Blake looked in the direction the voice came from, and saw, from a small compressed form, 2 glowing lights, one centered, one slightly above, and to the right of, the main one. Suddenly, the form decompressed, revealing..."Enigma?"

"Yes. I waited here to confront you about something...you are Faunus," the Geth said, matter-of-factly.

"Why...how-" Blake began.

"The first time I saw you, my sensors picked up an abnormality. The second time, a similar one was detected. I was uncertain what it was...until I witnessed the discrimination faced by Velvet Scarlatina, and remembered the abuse a Faunus shopkeeper faced when myself and Retribution first arrived in Vale. Therefore, I took a genetics scan earlier, and compared it to multiple other such scans. Yours matched the irregularities in the Faunus DNA. I determined you had to be Faunus, and was looking for proof. And, now I have it..."

"Then you understand why I am hiding it..." Blake responded.

"Yes. I do not intend to tell anyone unless you specifically ask."

Blake smiled. "Thank you."

"Acknowledged."

With that, Enigma went back inside, as Blake looked at the sky.

* * *

**That's Chapter 5...IT'S OFFICIAL: RUBY IS SMARTER THAN ALL THE LEVIATHAN COMBINED! LOL!  
**

**Next chapter will be the return to Maxivius and his squad, and their first RWBY World-native member...the OC. Everyone, still guess who Maxivius takes from the RWBY canon as a squadmate!**


	7. Chapter 6 - Armiger: Gravity Hurts

**Ok, time for a new chapter.**

**Also, for those who don't know, I had to rename the Asari Vanguard (to Reviane Besus)...and the Turian Havoc (to Maxivius Sylmus)...again...I put a note in the chapters that intro them, as well as edited the chapters...it's to fit into the plans I have...I'm sorry that this seems so inconsistent, but the ideas I keep getting with them, I keep finding some fatal flaw in them that make me incapable of working with them...However, THIS ONE, I think is fool-proof! Let us all hope it is...  
**

**thermalsnipern7: Look at the teaser trailer and you'll see I already have that planned. ;)**

**Mr Guest: Now that you mention it...it might be interesting to see what could be done with weapons using Dust...have it planned for the 2 Geth and the Quarian to begin making ME tech stuff in Remnant, but...incorporating Dust into some weapons... *evil chuckle***

**mastermind: My apologies, I didn't mean for it to come out as hostile. In fact, my "here come the critics" comment was meant to be jocular in nature...I'm sorry if I offended you...**

**Armiger: Gravity Hurts**

* * *

After a couple days of traveling through the forest, Maxivius and Reviane finally arrived in a city near the structure they saw earlier. They looked around, and saw the city inhabited solely by humans. "This...could be a problem..." Maxivius muttered.

"Only if they know of the First Contact War, Maxivius, and the reason I say that is that there is definitely something off here, " Reviane replied. The duo moved through the streets, looking around. Most people seemed to stare at them, although, surprisingly, they didn't look much at Maxivius, and, when they did, only at his legs, and even THEN only for long. It was Reviane that got the most attention, although it was mostly negative: a few people sneered at her, some even looked like they were gonna pick a fight with her. Although, there were still plenty who just took one look at her and continued on their way.

Soon, they came up on a street, and noticed a clothing store, and entered. They saw, at the counter, a young human woman...or they thought she was human: she had a pair of mouse ears on her had, and she nibbled nervously on a piece of cheese. However, when the duo entered the store, she hastily put the cheese away. "Hello, what can I do for you today?" Then, the woman noticed their armor and weapons, and asked, "Are you both Hunters?"

The duo looked confused. "What do you mean, "Hunters"?" Maxivius asked.

The woman's jaw dropped. "You...definitely aren't from around here aren't you? This is just like that alien and robot that came into my shop a week or two ago!"

Maxivius started at that. "Alien and robot?! Can you describe them for us?"

"Uhhh...sure..." the woman said, sounding worried, "The...robot was tall, had one eye, with what looked like a little flashlight above and to the right of the eye...as well as 3-fingered hands and 3-toed feet. Then, the alien...it was bug-like-"

Reviane interrupted then. "6 Glowing Green eyes? Crackled with green lightning? No visible mouth and covered head-to-toe with chitinous armor?"

"Uhhh...yes...exactly...why? Do you know-"

"Enigma and Retribution! It has to be them!" Maxivius exclaimed, before turning back to the woman. "Please! You must tell us what happened to them!"

"I-I don't know! Wait, why would you want to know?!" the woman asked nervously.

Maxivius and Reviane looked at each other, and Reviane nodded. Maxivius looked back at the woman...and removed his helmet, revealing his face, Ankh-like black paint over pale skin. His mandibles shuttered, as though showing them as being movable. "Does this answer your question?"

"You're one of them?" the woman asked, scared.

"As am I," Reviane replied.

This actually startled the woman. "You are?! You at least could easily have passed for some kind of Octopus Faunus!"

"Faunus?" Reviane asked, confused.

"You don't have-Oh, right, alien," the woman replied, "We Faunus are, really, just humans with animal traits, like my mouse ears. Reason I said you could pass for an octopus Faunus is due to those tentacles on your head. Just the skin color was a little off, and even that might be explainable."

"So we don't need much in the way of disguises," Maxivius stated.

"You do: without your helmet, you look like some kind of previously-unknown Grimm with that white face and black markings," the Faunus quipped.

"Then I'll leave it on!" Maxivius stated, "Not like I don't like the thing..."

"Still...don't you think maybe you should get something else...I mean..." She then twitched her nose. "That armor DOES kinda smell...how long have you been wearing?"

Maxivius "I don't know, tack on an extra 3 days to how long ago Enigma and Retribution came here, and that would be the minimum."

The Faunus Woman stared at the Turian, before saying, "Yeah: you need something else to wear so you can clean that. Come on..."

"Uhm, we don't have any money!" Reviane said.

The woman smirked. "Are you kidding me? Your friends chased off some thugs that've been harassing me, and I haven't had to deal with any thugs like them since! This one's on the house!"

* * *

Naomi Delacroix watched the city. It's been 2 years since she successfully entered Beacon Academy...and one since Torchwick, in revenge for Naomi thwarting his plans, framed her for a pretty nasty theft, resulting in her being kicked out of Beacon, and becoming a fugitive. She still didn't know how he imitated damage caused by her Semblence.

Her parents were dead, so there was no where she could go...so she was forced to hide in the city. She looked out over the city, the place that hates her so much now...but even so, she won't turn against it. Face hidden by her black robe, which originally came from her mother, she still couldn't be seen: Torchwick discovered what they looked like, and somehow let it slip to the police what her robes looked like. 'Some day, I'm gonna run that bastard through!' Naomi thought angrily to herself.

She continued scanning the city, before seeing a pair of individuals, both obscured by cloaks: one's cloak was dingy brown, the other, a more feminine form, blue. Naomi was wary of these new-comers. She didn't trust them, so she kept an eye on them, following them from the rooftops. As she followed them, they just continued walking, exploring, occasionally looking to orange glowing devices that sprang up on their left arms.

Then, she noticed something ahead: familiar black-suited men with red sunglasses, and another man with a white suit and a bowler hat. She snarled, recognizing him. 'Roman Torchwick', she inwardly growled. They appeared to be robbing another store. She unsheathed her weapon, Gravitas Puteus, and readied to attack the man, but then, the cloaked individuals came around the corner, encountering Torchwick. "Hey!" the male cloaked figure shouted, "What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

* * *

Maxivius drew his Phaeston Assault Rifle, pointing it at the bowler hat wearing man. The men in suits pointed their guns at the group, as the man in the bowler hat raised his cane. "Who are you? You definitely look unusual."

"The person that's going to take you down," Maxivius replied, Reviane coming up alongside him, her Disciple Shotgun pointed at them.

The man in the bowler hat laughed. "Better than you have tried, friend. Well, Brown and Green, I can safely say this has been an entertaining afternoon...but really, I must go." He then fired a blast from his cane...

...And another form dropped between the 2 groups: a person in a black robe. Suddenly, a gravitic warp appeared in front of her, warping and dispersing the blast. They initially thought it was Biotics, but their Omni-Tools detected _no_ Eezo from her. "Well, well, well...would you look here? Trying to steal from more shops, Torchwick?" Then, the cloaked figure raised her head, revealing a 19-year old human girl, her face showing an immense amount of hatred for the man in the bowler hat.

Torchwick's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Well, if it isn't you. Thought you'd've been arrested by now..."

"Just because you framed me for one of your robberies-gone-wrong, and I'm now hated by law enforcement, doesn't mean I'm not gonna be the one to _take you down_!" the girl said, menacingly. She then revealed a cutlass...that turned into some kind of carbine.

"You so sure?" Torchwick said. Then, the man loaded something into his cane, and fired. The girl blocked with another gravitic distortion...but the blast instead was torn apart and hit the girl anyways...knocking her clean out. "Pathetic: always so boistrous, and, yet, can't back it up...what can I expect from a Beacon washout..." He then pointed the cane again. "Now..." His expression turned to shock, as Reviane had closed with him, and hit him with a biotically-charged punch. "Why the hell did you guys not shoot her?! Take her down!"

Maxivius smirked watching Reviane fighting Torchwick and his goon, while using his Propulsion Packs to get to the top of the buildings, the girl who intervened in tow. 'Who is this girl?' Maxivius asked himself, as he escaped.

* * *

Naomi woke with a severe headache. 'Damn it! DAMN IT! Why the HELL do I do this?!' she thought to herself angrily, 'He always does this, he ALWAYS has a backup plan! Bastard never does anything twice!'

She slowly pushed herself up, but a hand held her down. "Slow down there," a gravely male voice said, "That was a nasty hit you took."

When Naomi's blurred vision cleared, she saw a helmeted head looking at her. The cloak was definitely the same as the male she was spying on earlier. Behind him, she saw the blue cloaked figured climbed up. The helmeted male looked at her and nodded, before turning back to Naomi. "Who are you?" Naomi asked, weakly, silently kicking herself for sounding that weak.

The helmeted man nodded, "I am Commander Maxivius Sylmus, and this is Reviane Besus."

"Naomi...Naomi Delacroix," Naomi said.

The armored individual looked to Reviane, and the blue cloaked woman nodded. "We're here looking for people to form a team to deal with a threat encroaching upon this world."

"First the Grimm..." Naomi groaned, "Then the White Fang...Then this Torchwick bastard..." She groaned again, once more pushing herself to a sitting position. "Now what else can be thrown at us."

"I cannot say," Maxivius answered, "What I can say is that, if this threat isn't stopped, those other threats you mentioned will be the least of anyone's worries..."

"Even the Grimm?" Naomi asked skeptically.

Hearing Maxivius's tone, Naomi could almost imagine the scowl. "Especially this..."Grimm"..."

"I fail to see how any threat exceeds that of the Grimm," Naomi stated.

The 2 individuals looked at each other, Reviane nodding at Maxivius, before Maxivius said, "Well...then...you better sit down...this will...not be pleasent..."

* * *

Over time, the girl's expression changed from skepticism to sheer horror as Maxivius explained the Reapers, the Collectors, Cerberus, and the other threats Maxivius faced. "...And when we arrived here, we faced Reaper Husks, suggesting the Reapers are here as well."

At that point, Naomi was in a state of sheer horror. The duo waited for the vigilante to compose herself, and, when she did, she said, "That...that is definitely worse than the Grimm...is anyone doing anything about them?"

Maxivius shrugged. "We have some friends of ours here. We know they've been to Vale-"

"We know Retribution and Enigma have been to Vale," Reviane corrected, "And we don't even know where they are now..."

"Right, still, in that case, no one other than our people know of this threat, and I doubt we'd be believed, seeing as we're..."

"You're also aliens," Naomi finished. She remembered that particular part of Maxivius's "orientation": he even removed his helmet to prove he was an alien. With a face like his, it'd be easy to believe...that or that he's some kind of Grimm.

"Right. Therefore, we have to gather potential allies to help us fight. The more people we gather, the greater the chance we have of fighting the Reapers when they come..."

There was silence for a moment, as the girl seemed to think. Finally, after a few minutes of silence, the girl stated, "I want to help."

"What?!" Maxivius asked, shocked.

"I want to help fight...for a year, I've been forced to run for a crime I've not committed...I just want a chance to do some good again...Besides, with my family gone, there's no one who gives a damn about me, so...no one would be sad if I was gone...So much went wrong for me, I just want something to go right for once..."

The girl's sad explanation struck a cord in Maxivius. He had a friend that felt that way for a while, although now he was one of the people heading the galactic effort against the Reapers. He looked at Reviane again, who seemed against the girl being brought along. Maxivius looked back at her and asked, "What kind of combat training have you had?"

"I've...had a full education at Signal Academy...then I went to Beacon Academy for a year...then the whole thing with Torchwick happened, and now..." Naomi slumped, apparently saddened at her ejection from Beacon.

"And these "Signal" and "Beacon" Academies...they are...?" Maxivius asked.

"Oh, facilities for training Hunters and Huntresses. They teach us how to make our own weapons, and more importantly, how to use them, so that, eventually, we can fight Grimm and other threats to the world," Naomi stated.

Maxivius then asked, "And your weapon would be...?"

Naomi pulled her cutlass from her cloak. At the press of a button, it turned into a futuristic carbine. "This is Gravitas Puteus, a Rapid-Fire Cutlass Carbine. I made it at Signal. I named it after my Semblence."

"Semblence?" Reviane asked, confused, looking at Maxivius.

"An ability generated by our Aura. There are many kinds: damage absorption, super-speed, magnetism control. Mine is the ability to manipulate gravity: I can create black hole-like points, pull or push stuff away, even make wormholes for short-range travel, although that one took some time to master."

Reviane's eyebrows rose, impressed, believing she mis-judged the girl. She gave a relenting nod, and Maxivius turned to her. "Listen, we still need people to join our team. If you want, we can let you in: we may not be able to clear your name, but if we can save your world...that'll more than overshadow whatever this "Torchwick" did...What do you say, you're up for it?"

Naomi's eyes brightened at this chance. "Alright," she said, nodding, "What's our first course of action?"

"First, we head to the forest outside town: I want to see what you can do, with my own eyes, and those creatures out there, which I'm guessing are "Grimm", may be the best chance we have of finding out..."

* * *

**So, that's it for this chapter, and we meet the next member of Maxivius's anti-Reaper team. Before you ask, I DID base Naomi Delacroix's robed outfit after a black set of Assassins Creed Robes.  
**

**Sorry for the short chapter, BTW, I didn't know much of what to do...  
**


	8. Chapter 7 - Priority: Forever Fall I

**Ok, now it's time for this week's installment of RWBY: The Reapers...and now for some Review Answers:**

**mastermind: Still trying to figure out something for the Dextros. For Lunn, he has a large stockpile of Dextro Rations with him. For Max...I'll just probably say he had some of Lunn's rations...**

**As for why Purge isn't attacking, the Reaper Forces that both Max and Retty encountered actually came through the portal initially: Purge isn't actually ****_there_**** yet...but he's coming...sending scouting forces through the portal to get a feel for the entry zone...And when he gets there... *evil chuckle***

**Chapter 7 - Priority: Forever Fall I**

* * *

Ruby stood across the arena from Retribution. This wasn't a usual duel, this was more of a showing off of some of Team REPR's newest weapons: Retribution, Enigma, Centurion, and Lunn have been working with Ruby to upgrade the arsenals of both Team REPR and Team CTDL to "Remnant Standards"...as in making the weapons capable of using Dust-based ammunition AND enabling them to transform into secondary melee modes.

Retribution stood across from Ruby, and pulled out his Collector Assault Rifle, newly named "Collector's Rage", as Ruby pulled out Crescent Rose. As Ruby readied Crescent Rose's Scythe Mode, Retribution readied Collector's Rage's melee mode: the Collector Assault Rifle morphed and shifted into a longsword with spikes on one side of the blade. He then pulled out his Prothean Particle Rifle, now called "Prothean's Wrath", and transformed it into its sword mode...a sword mode that cloaked its blade in a powerful particle field. As the 2 readied to fight, the others of Team REPR showed their new weapons to teams CTDL, RWBY, and JNPR: Enigma's Javelin and Plasma Shotgun are now called "Truestrike" and "Plasma Shredder", with the former turning into an actual javelin and the latter turning into some kind of clawed club-like weapon; Pierson's Eagle, called "Elite Talon", able to turn into forked dagger, and his Valkyrie Assault Rifle, named "Gungnir", able to turn into a spear; and Rukar's M-300 Claymore, now called "Tuchanka Blade", and Graal Spike Thrower, called "Shredder Maw", able to turn into a greatsword and hammer respectively.

Their attention returned to the sparring session, as Collector's Rage clashed with Crescent Rose, and locked with the scythe's blade. Retribution then stabbed forward, stopping Prothean's Wrath inches from Ruby's neck, indicating a victory. Teams REPR and CTDL cheered and congratulated Retribution, while Teams RWBY and JNPR offered Ruby condolences for her defeat. Ruby, however, was secretly very prideful that the weapons she helped design were operational: Collector's Rage and Prothean's Wrath were both very difficult to make, due to the former's biotech nature, and the latter's ancient and advanced technology. She watched as Rukar stepped down, bringing out Tuchanka Blade, and Shredder Maw on his back, and Yang readied to challenge him.

'Ok, _this_ is going to be good,' Ruby thought to herself.

* * *

Retribution and the rest of Team REPR, as well as Team CTDL, entered Ozpin's office. Ozpin turned around, Professor Goodwitch at his side. "Good, you've arrived."

"You needed to see us, Professor?" Retribution asked.

Ozpin nodded. "Yes. I still remember how the "Reaper" forces attacked during Initiation, and some of our students who've been in Emerald Forest since have reported being attacked by similar creatures to the ones you warned me about. Fortunately, no deaths yet, but there've been plenty of injuries...enough to justify closing off Emerald Forest."

"But how does that involve us?" Rukar asked, "Something tells me you're not just gonna have us go in and clear it out."

"You're right," Ozpin replied, "Something else has my concern: tomorrow, Professor Peach's class, escorted by Professor Goodwitch, is set to head out into Forever Fall, for an assignment. Naturally, I'm worried that the Reaper presence is not isolated to Emerald Forest, and there may be some Reapers in Forever Fall."

"You want us to patrol the area in Forever Fall, and ensure Reaper Forces do not attack the students," Enigma surmised.

"Correct," Ozpin stated.

Goodwitch then entered the conversation. "While you all will be in Professor Peach's class that's participating in this assignment, I discussed things with Ozpin and Peach, and, we agreed that your...unique expertise...in the area of this problem requires your intervention. As such, the professor willing to give you full credit on the assignment, in return for your aid here."

"Seems like an easy assignment," Drosk nonchalantly responded, "And not boring either."

"Indeed," Retribution commented, "And, as you said: our experience is needed, should the Reapers be in Forever Fall."

"Excellent. With luck, we may have nothing to worry about..." Ozpin stated, "Although, keep on your guard: even if there aren't any Reapers there, Forever Fall is crawling with Grimm of various varieties, meaning you may even need to engage something, even if it isn't Reaper."

* * *

"Yes, students, the forest of Forever Fall is indeed beautiful. But we are not here to sight-see. Professor Peach has asked all of you to collect samples from the trees deep inside this forest, and I'm here to make sure none of you die while doing so," Goodwitch said, as the teams readied to move out.

Teams REPR and Team CTDL were cradling their weapons. Ruby, Centurion, Enigma, and Lunn had time to modify the main weapons of Team CTDL before the trip to Forever Fall. Centurion's Spitfire, called "Rannoch Rotor", could basically turn into a large rotor blade set-up, which could be used both as a shield and as a saw-like weapon. Tiara's N7 Typhoon was now called "Elite Saber", and could turn into a bastard sword with a large cross guard. Drosk's Kishock Harpoon Gun was now called "Khar'shan Spear Striker", capable of turning into a Spear. Finally, Lunn's Javelin, called "Strike-Shot", was similar to Enigma's "Truestrike", except the Javelin could be remote-controlled with Lunn's Omni-Tool.

Goodwitch continued, "Each of you is to gather one jar's worth of red sap. However, this forest is full of the creatures of Grimm, so be sure to stay by your teammates. We will rendezvous back here by 4 o'clock. Have fun!" The teams departed, except for Teams REPR and CTDL. Goodwitch turned to them. "You remember your mission: if you encounter any signs of Reaper activity, eliminate the threat, and report it to me. If you don't, just try to prevent any Grimm from reaching the students. Am I clear?"

"Crystal," Retribution replied.

Rukar, however, noticed a scene with Cardin and Jaune, with the former dragging the latter along. Under his helmet, Rukar narrowed his eyes. Muttering under his breath, Rukar asked, directed at the unsuspecting Cardin, "Rare...medium...or well-done?"

* * *

Teams REPR and CTDL had split up into its partner groups: Retribution and Enigma, Pierson and Rukar, Centurion and Tiara, and Drosk and Lunn. The squads split up, readying for anything, Reaper or Grimm, that would come. To the north of the students, Pierson and Rukar just took down a small pack of Beowolves...and Rukar was having his usual Beowolf leg. Helmet off, the Krogan devoured the Grimm leg, as Pierson checked to make sure the Grimm were dead. "Rukar, why do you have to eat EVERY Grimm we come across?! You even climbed down that ravine to eat that Nevermore Team RWBY killed!"

"Hey! It tasted like chicken, and you KNOW how that's the human food I like the best!" Rukar countered.

"And what about the fact that Professor Port _actually_ gave you Boarbatusk bacon?" Pierson quipped. The krogan just glared at the N7, pulling a strip of the aforementioned bacon out and chomping on it. Pierson just shook his head and looked around. Suddenly, they heard a scream. The duo hurried to where they heard it, and what they saw was shocking: one of the student teams were fleeing from what looked at first like Grimm...but there was something different about them...

"Ah, you have got to be _shitting_ me!" Rukar said, seeing a pack of Reaperized Beowolves. Seeing the students alive, but one injured, the duo leapt from the ledge they were standing on, and while Pierson readied Gungnir, Rukar leapt far, wielding Tuchanka Blade, unleashing a battle cry, and landing on one of the Grimm.

The students stopped, and they noticed him. "Rukar?!" one of the students, a girl with a crossbow, asked in confusion. Of course, every student knew of the aliens and their names, but still, to see one here...

"Get going, kids..." Rukar replied, "This ain't your average Grimm, these are WAY out of your league..." As the Grimm approached, Rukar flared with biotics, and flashed forward with a biotic charge, staggering the foremost monster, and he began shredding the enemy, as Pierson came out of the forest, impaling one of the Grimm Husks on his spear. The husk, however, was not going to be so easy to beat, as it dragged itself across the weapon, towards the soldier, elongated claws ready to strike.

"No way!" Pierson said, as he pulled out Elite Talon and fired on the Grimm Husk. After several shots, the Grimm finally succumbed. He scraped the Grimm Husk off the spear, as Rukar crushed the last one. "What! The! _FUCK_?!" Pierson yelled, after a moment of silence.

Rukar just walked up, and ripped the head of one of the husked Grimm off. "I dunno...I have a feeling these guys'll be called "Shredders"...you?"

"Who cares what we name them, we have GOT to warn the others!" Pierson replied.

"Right," Rukar replied, activating his Omni-Tool and linking it to the others, in addition to Goodwitch's and Ozpin's Scrolls. "This is Rukar to Teams REPR and CTDL, and Professors Goodwitch and Ozpin! We just took down a squad of Huskified Beowolves! I repeat, we are facing Reaperized Grimm here!"

There was silence, until another voice came over the comms. "This is Retribution, Enigma and I already know: we are pursuing a Reaper-transformed Ursa that almost killed a group of students. This is a general call to arms: all squads, move in, locate, and engage any Reaperized Grimm you can find."

"This is indeed troubling," Ozpin's voice then came over the comms, "Continue with that course of action, but we must find out where the Reapers are able to transform these Grimm."

"All Team CTDL units, this is Centurion. Rendezvous at my position. Tiara and I have probably located the source. Retribution, it would be wise to have your teams continue hunting for those already deployed."

"Acknowledged, Centurion," Retribution responded, and Team CTDL logged off. "Alright, Goodwitch, I'd suggest you begin rounding up the students: the larger the group, the more likely they'll be able to defend each other. Team REPR will move on and take out any that are still out there."

"Sounds like a prudent course of action. If you find any students, send them my way," Goodwitch said, before logging off.

"Alright, Rukar, Pierson, keep searching for both Students and Reaper Grimm: if you find students, send them to Goodwitch. If you find Reaperized Grimm..."

"Rip 'em to shreds, got it, logging off," Rukar said, turning off his Omni-Tool. "Let's go, Pierson, we got husks to demolish."

* * *

"HAH!" Retribution slashed his toothy blade one more time, with Collector's Rage sawing through the last of the Reaperized Beowolves in this pack. "Out of our way!"

"All Reaperized Beowolves in this pack neutralized," Enigma reported, "Tagged Reaperized Ursa in nearby clearing." The group continued until..."Warning! Reading additional lifesigns in clearing: Identified as Cardin Winchester, Jaune Arc, Pyrrha Nikos, Weiss Schnee, and Ruby Rose!"

Retribution's eyes glowed, and the duo rushed in the direction of the clearing...As Jaune swiped his sword, removing the Reaperized Grimm's head from its shoulders. "Holy..." the Collector barely got out. They watched the exchanges between Jaune and Cardin, and Pyrrha, Weiss, and Ruby, as they approached.

Enigma pulled out Plasma Shredder. As Jaune walked away from Cardin, he noticed them approach. "Hey, what're you guys doing-" He was interrupted by Enigma shooting his shotgun at the corpse. "What the hell?!"

"Had to make sure," Enigma replied, "All students are to return to Professor Goodwitch at once."

"What's going on?" Ruby said, rushing from the trees, followed by Pyrrha and Weiss.

Retribution looked at Cardin, then at the group, and sighed. "Ruby...the Reapers' influence has sped further. Do you not notice the implants in this Ursa?"

Ruby looked closer, but it was Weiss that spoke out. "Those are Reaper Implants!"

"Exactly," Enigma stated, "And earlier, Pierson and Rukar reported fighting a pack of Reaperized Beowolves. We believe the Reapers are now taking Grimm to add to their forces."

"Reapers? What the hell are you guys talking about?" Cardin asked.

Retribution just glared at him, shutting him up, before turning back to the others. "You need to return to Goodwitch. With the Reapers' influence here, it's not safe-"

***BOOM***

A moment later..."This is Tiara, we took out the place the Reapers used to Huskify Grimm. Had to go through a whole bunch of those "Shredders" to do it as well."

"HAH!" Rukar said over the comms, "I KNEW it'd catch on."

Pierson then spoke, "So, you take down that Reaperized Ursa yet? You've been pursuing it for the better part of an hour."

A shocked look came over Jaune's face, as Retribution responded, "Actually...Jaune beat us to the punch..."

"What?!" Rukar shouted, "The puny boy leading Team JNPR?! That kid's got a quad, after all!"

"Whatever! We must regroup, and report everything to Goodwitch and Ozpin!" Retribution commented.

"Acknowledged," Centurion replied, "All units, regroup at Goodwitch's position."

* * *

"So, you took down the facility that was producing the Reaperized Grimm? Are you certain it was the only one?" Ozpin asked, for not the first time

"As of yet, it appeared to be," Pierson said, "And we also took down many of those Reaperized Beowolves, while Jaune Arc managed to take down the Mauler."

"'Mauler'?" Goodwitch asked.

"The Reaperized Ursa," Enigma clarified, "The others are applying names to the creatures in order to make indicating them in a combat situation a simple task. Reaperized Ursa are Maulers; Reaperized Beowolves are Shredders."

"I see," Ozpin replied.

"So, what is the plan now?" Retribution said.

"If patrols can be made, we might be able to prevent having to close Forever Fall," Goodwitch pointed out.

"I can agree," Retribution stated, "We might even find a way to box the Reaper Forces in Emerald Forest."

"Until then...something needs to be done: the students are trained to hunt Grimm, not Reapers," Ozpin stated.

"You don't hunt Reapers, they hunt you: you just try to kill them when they find you," Retribution stated.

"Either way," Goodwitch stated, "We need to find a way to teach at least some of the students how to fight Reapers. If it weren't for your classes, I'd ask you."

"We got free periods, don't we? Why not just take advantage of them? Especially since we have the same schedule as most other first years," Rukar pointed out.

Ozpin smiled. "That's a good point. Of course, with that amount of time, each of your teams will have to select one team each to teach. Although, I'm sure you got something figured out for that..."

Retribution looked at the others. They nodded, knowing who he was thinking of: only 2 other teams managed to take down _any_ Reapers during REPR's and CTDL's time at Beacon. "Yes, we do have 2 teams figured out." The groups prepared to depart, and Retribution said, "Please excuse us, I need to locate Ruby Rose."

Centurion then piped in, "And I need to locate Jaune Arc."

* * *

**Well, that's it for the chapter. I think next chapter will either be the next Armiger Chapter or a Hybrid Chapter like Chapter 4 was. Meaning, yes, it's time to intro the person who joins up with Maxivius, Reviane, and Naomi. Last chance for you guys to guess...and so far, no one did. Come on, I want to hear who you guys think will join the Anti-Reaper Team...  
**

**EDIT: OH! Almost forgot: thanks to thermalsnipern7 for the Reaper-Grimm names...**


	9. Chapter 8 - Priority: Beacon III

**Well, time for the next episode of RWBY: The Reapers.**

**And to the reviews...**

**thermalsnipern7: Thanks, I will...**

**mastermind: Well...hmmm...let's see if I can get to everything...**

**Well, firstly, the beginning of the story (of which, it is QUITE a while past) takes place after Rannoch but before Thessia. And because of some little difference in the flow of time between the 2 universes, time in the RWBY universe is faster than in the Mass Effect Universe, meaning a week in the ME universe is longer in the RWBY universe. (Please tell me I explained that right: if the phrase is "time is slower in ME than RWBY, the please tell me, but, as it stands, I THINK the proper term here is "Faster"). As such, right now, the story is probably at...maybe between Horizon and the Cerberus Base, with Shepard taking care of some missions beforehand to prep, if not slightly later.**

**The portal, due to its location, is preventing Purge to send troops in large amounts, mainly due to how difficult it is to get to it.**

**However...well, Purge is the only ****_Capital Ship-type Reaper_**** (Sovereign-class) to take part, so I may have been inaccurate if I suggested otherwise. There'll be a few Destroyer-type Reapers (the one you kill on Rannoch) there too, however, as with Purge, they can't arrive immediately.**

**thelonewander117: Good guesses with reasons, but no cigar...**

**some guy: Don't underestimate a Collector with a Plasma Blade/Particle Beam Rifle, a girl with a Scythe/Sniper Rifle, and their friends...Especially with a Turian Havoc and his team in reserve...**

**Priority: Beacon III**

**/**

**Armiger: The Schism  
**

* * *

Ruby dodged, as a simulated Brute charged her, however, she came too close to a Banshee, and it was only because of Weiss that she was not "killed". Meanwhile, Yang charged a small pack of Ravagers, and smashed them, as Blake covered her against Husks.

On the other side of the room, Jaune and Pyrrha were taking on a Mauler and some Shredders, while Ren and Nora challenged a Guardian, or a King Taijitu Husk.

From above, Teams REPR and CTDL watched, evaluating the Team RWBY's and Team JNPR's performance. For the past few days, the 2 teams have been drilling the only native Reaper-killers on Remnant in actual battlefield tactics to use against the Reapers. Standing next to the observing teams were Professor Goodwitch and Headmaster Ozpin. "They're doing well," Ozpin stated, after a long bout of silence.

"Not well enough: teamwork is essential, but each one must learn to stand on their own," Retribution stated, as he pointed towards Weiss staggering a simulated Brute that got the drop on Ruby.

"That's the 4th time this session alone that Weiss had to pull Ruby's ass out of the fire," Rukar stated.

"Such mistakes can mean the difference between life and death on the battlefield," Enigma stated.

"You cannot expect them to get it right on the first try," Ozpin stated.

Even Goodwitch held this opinion. "They _are_ children."

"Understandable, however, with the Reapers beating on our door, we cannot afford them making mistakes when the Reapers themselves arrive, lest we lose them," Retribution stated, "The lower the number of students that die in the confrontation, the better...with a lack of native casualties being preferable." Retribution then advanced on the computer, and typed in a command, stopping more enemies from spawning, giving the groups a brief respite, before unleashing a simulated Collector attack on them. "It's because they're children we're pushing them so hard: we want them to have the chance to live as children should: unfortunately, they're the only hope this world has to survive, we can NOT fight this threat on our own...they'll have to fight for their future...to earn their happy ending..."

* * *

It's been a week or so since Maxivius Sylmus and Reviane Besus recruited Naomi Delacroix to their team, and during that time, they'd augmented the girl's arsenal. . They returned to the nearby forest, sneaking past some forces locking it down (if there were Reapers in there, Maxivius decided it was a smart decision), and returning to where they appeared, finding a lot of parts, allowing them to rebuild a number of weapons, namely an M-90 Indra, an M-15 Vindicator, an M-27 Scimitar, an M-9 Tempest, and an M-5 Phalanx. They were also able to craft a suit of armor resembling a suit of Rosenkov Materials Armor, with a Recon Hood. They finally were able to scavenge and fix a Bluewire Omni-Tool, which they taught Naomi how to use. After teaching Naomi the basics of how to use the weapons, armor, and Omni-Tool, they returned to Vale, and continued their search for a viable partner.

In between searches, both groups continued to describe the various threats of their worlds. Maxivius and Reviane went to describe the various mercenary and terrorist organizations in the galaxy. Naomi interrupted them while they described Cerberus, seeing some correlation between Cerberus and the White Fang. As the duo talked about Cerberus and the White Fang, however, they heard something below. Down below, they saw something that surprised Naomi.

At first, it looked like 2 groups of White Fang, but a closer look revealed one group didn't have the usual white and red masks of the White Fang, they instead possessed black and neon blue masks. And the black-masked Faunus were being chased by the White Fang members. It didn't take long to determine the 2 groups were not on friendly terms.

"Any idea who the black masked individuals are?" Maxivius asked Naomi.

Naomi shook her head. "No, they look like White Fang, but...they're also different..."

"It could be a splinter group," Reviane replied, "There've been plenty of splinter groups of Cerberus over the years: maybe the White Fang aren't as unified as they look."

"Maybe..." Naomi mused, "So...what do we do?"

"We follow," Maxivius replied, "We follow, and determine if the splinter group can be reasoned with."

* * *

"_I'll set the charges._"

"_What about the crew members?_"

"_What about them?_"

The old conversation appeared in his head, and he tried shaking his head to get it out. However, it merely lead to another, more painful memory.

"_Wait!_"

"_Goodbye..._"

'Damn it!' Adam thought to himself, remembering the day. He and Blake were raiding a Schnee Dust Company train, and he was ready to blow the whole thing to smithereens. He knew how Blake felt about wanton destruction, and yet, all he cared about was payback. Seeing Blake leaving and realizing how the change in the White Fang provoked her departure...it didn't affect him at first, but, as time moved on, the guilt crept in. He didn't know why at first: humans tried to dominate the Faunus, so what they were doing was fighting for their own rights...but as he kept going, he noticed more and more that not all humans were against the Faunus. At first, he was disgusted with the Faunus befriending humans, thinking them traitors, but...far too many Faunus are friends with far too many humans...

Soon, he began to question the fighting the White Fang were doing, question the fighting he originally enjoyed. Eventually, it came to the point that his questioning went at odds with working with the White Fang. Soon he had to make a choice...a choice he made.

Now, he and a few of fellow like-minded ex-White Fang were fleeing from their former brethren, to try and maybe set up a splinter cell of the group, maybe interfere with their capabilities. However, the White Fang are on their tail, and they are closing fact. Adam knew he'd have to face them sooner or later. He'll have to fight...and he knew he might lose...

* * *

It was after classes and Teams RWBY, JNPR, REPR, and CTDL were hanging out. The groups were conversing about a variety of topics, mainly with Teams REPR and CTDL going more into detail about their worlds.

"Wow, your galaxy certainly has a lot of problems..." Yang commented

"That Morning War sounds a little like the Faunus War," Blake added.

"Only more successful in almost wiping out one of the sides," Weiss added.

Enigma explained, "It was not the intent of the Geth to destroy the Creators. We merely acted in self-defense, and the Creators continued to try to destroy us: we had little option but to fight back, and soon, only 17 million Creators left Rannoch. We did not wish to destroy the Creators: when the Creators and Geth made peace, not too long before our arrival here, that was a day that would bring joy to the Geth, to finally begin to live with the Creators in peace and equality."

"That must be nice," Blake replied. She was sure to compose herself as to not give away her secret, seeing as only Enigma knew about it.

"It indeed is. I hope the Faunus eventually find similar acceptance," Enigma replied.

Watching this was Retribution, who was leaning against the wall, thinking. He was currently contemplating the abilities possessed by RWBY and JNPR, these "Semblences" and this "Aura". He knew this was an edge the Reapers' troops couldn't possibly have. He didn't know how he knew it, he just...did...

As he contemplated this, however, a voice spoke to him. "Are you alright?" Retribution turned around and saw Ruby. "You've been standing here by yourself."

"I'm fine...I'm merely thinking."

"About what?"

"These...'Semblences' and 'Aura' you and the others have. They are unlike anything I have ever seen, and likely not like anything the Reapers have too...they would be a valuable asset against the Reapers. If only myself and my teams can control them."

"Maybe you can," Ruby stated. Retribution looked at her quizzically. "Every living thing that has a soul has Aura. And, from what I've seen, you guys aren't soulless monsters."

"How can we know if I have an Aura?" Retribution asked.

Ruby shrugged. "I can try activating it. I talked to Pyrrha about it, and she showed me how to do it. I also read some things back at Signal. Put it together, and, if you have an Aura, I could try unlocking it."

Retribution looked back at the others. He knew he and the teams would need every weapon they could get in the fight against the Reapers, and this Aura and Semblence stuff may be their most unexpected and powerful asset against a foe that knows of neither. Retribution took a deep breath. "Do it."

Ruby then approached, and reached for the back of Retribution's head, her body beginning to glow a blood red. At first, nothing happened...but then, soon, Retribution began to glow a green similar in color to his biotics, accompanied by green arcs. Soon, Retribution felt as though a power within him had been unleashed, a warmth flowing through his body. Suddenly...several images flashed quickly before his eyes: the destruction of the Protheans by the Reapers, their conversion into the Collectors, the attacks on the human colonies, the Collector Base's destruction, and the encounter with Leviathan that freed him.

Soon, it was done, and Ruby staggered. She had fallen to the floor, clenching her head. "Are you alright?" Retribution asked, in worry.

Ruby clenched her head and groaned. Once she came to, she looked up into the Awakened Collector's glowing eyes, and asked, "Is...that what happened to you? Your race?" The look in her eyes wasn't fear, nor was it pity...it was concern, concern for a dear friend.

"Yes...yes it was..." Retribution replied.

He expected a few things to occur at this point, but none of them including Ruby rushing up and hugging Retribution (at least, not without tears). "It's ok," Ruby said, "The guys that did this to you guys, we'll take them down." Her voice was determined and with a hint of finality, like a friend making another friend a promise they had no intention of breaking.

Retribution couldn't help but be touched by this. He knew how difficult this would be: how possible that it would be for them all to die and fail...but he was still touched, filled with a friendly warmth he rarely ever felt. He returned the hug. "Thank you, Ruby. And we won't let them do to you as they did to us. I promise you that."

With that, the 2 separated, and returned to the others. Pyrrha looked at the duo, and immediately understood what happened. "Retribution...you're Aura's been unlocked."

The others of Team REPR and Team CTDL looked at him, then back to Ruby, then back to Retribution. "Yes, it has," Retribution said, a twinge of happiness in his voice.

"Not fair!" Drosk said, "The bug-man gets his Aura unlocked first, but we're stuck with weapons an biotics..."

"Hey, I offered to unlock his Aura," Ruby responded.

"You did? My sister has a thing for the bug-man?" Yang asked, teasingly.

"WHAT?! NO!" Ruby said, flustered. Yang laughed, and Retribution was inwardly amused.

Rukar then looked at Yang. "Hey, you mind helping unlock mine?" He snickered at asking.

Yang shrugged, and Pyrrha said, "Maybe we should discuss who helps unlock whose Aura. If the Reapers are coming soon, I believe that having all of us with all the advantages we can have will be useful."

"Acknowledged," Centurion replied, before asking, "Although, the question of whether Enigma and myself have Auras is still up in the air."

"We'll figure that out when we get to it," Retribution said, "Anyways, we should head into town come the weekend. It has been a while since we have been to Vale."

"Agreed," Rukar said, "Maybe that one bar finally has a drink with some kick to it."

"Hey, I know a place you could probably try," Yang stated,

Rukar smiled, "Looking forward to it..."

* * *

**With a combination of distractions and time running out, I have to cut the chapter here...that being said, we can definitely see that it is indeed a (somewhat) reformed Adam Taurus who is member 4 of Maxivius's those who don't believe Adam would ever turn against the White Fang...well, reformed villains is kind of a thing I like to do, DON'T JUDGE ME!  
**

**Don't worry, to those who guessed Penny: Penny gets a part in the story...just a different one.  
**

**Now, I'll probably have Adam join the team directly next chapter, as a pure Armiger Chapter.  
**

**Also...I didn't know how to end the chapter so I left it where I think the end would be...sorry if it seems too swift of an ending...**


	10. Chapter 9 - Armiger: The Bull

**FINALLY! I got the chapter done! I am SO sorry this took so long...and even more sorry it's a short piece of crap, but, you know, writer's block...hate it...**

**...**

**...**

**...**

**Ok, now to the next chapter, where Adam joins Maxivius's team...**

**Armiger: The Bull**

* * *

Over the rooftops, Maxivius, Reviane, and Naomi pursued the 2 groups of White Fang members. As they continued, they tried to determine the make-up of the groups. The fleeing group was larger, but the pursuers were much better equipped. The leader of the fleeing group was a Faunus wearing a black and red mask, and had a pair of red curved horns on his head.

The leader of the pursuers was...

"Torchwick!" Naomi snarled, as she tried to charge, only to be held back.

It was Maxivius. "Hold on! We don't want to show ourselves until we can be assured we can to stop him...if we attack too soon, he's guaranteed to get away. If we wait, we might be able to trap him..." Naomi huffed, but understood, and stood down.

The group merely continued their course, following the 2 teams. After some time, however, they began to reach an area where the fleeing group would be unable to escape: they'd have to intervene. "So, what are we going to do?" Reviane asked.

"Wait here, let them fight it out?" Naomi suggested, with a tint of anger directed at the White Fang. Maxivius glared at her. "...What?"

"We don't know if both sides are still considering themselves White Fang: those individuals being chased could easily be defectors, and they could use our help."

Naomi glared at him, and Maxivius glared back...finally, Naomi relented, huffed, and they continued forward. Soon enough, they reached the area where there was no where for the White Fang Defectors to run. The trio overlooked the situation, and Maxivius nearly jump packed in, when Naomi held him back. "Wait!"

"What are you doing?!" the Turian snarled.

Naomi pointed to multiple areas of the field of engagement: too much space where they could get shot up, and how, behind the White Fang Loyalists led by Torchwick, there was plenty of areas to hide, but currently, Torchwick's forces would successfully flank them if they engaged too quick. "Not just yet..." Maxivius studied the battlefield...and gave the Turian equivalent of a smirk, which Naomi returned. So they sat...and waited...

* * *

Adam led his group through the massive amount of containers in the warehouse the group entered. They'd hoped to evade their pursuers in there, but it appears that isn't going to be the case. He knew they were going to be boxed in here: there was no way around it. He thought back to everything he did in the White Fang, all the people he killed...

He knew he probably wasn't going to leave this alive either. He was upset by this. He wouldn't get the chance to see for himself whether the Faunus would be able to earn their equality, he wouldn't be able to see things between the Faunus and Humans settle...he'd never be able to apologize to Blake, for everything...Blake, the one friend he had, and he as good as spit on what she believed, last time they saw each other. There was no pretending he didn't; he did, plain and simple.

...He couldn't let it end here, he wouldn't! It was then that he noticed the set-up in front of them, a massive amount of containers blocking their path. They'd never be able to climb over them. They had little option but to make their stand there. He nodded to his fellow renegades, who took positions there to defend themselves. The White Fang forces led by Roman Torchwick closed in on them, soon close enough to attack. Torchwick's forces began firing, as Adam's renegades fired back. However, Adam's force was taking more casualties, and soon, there was only a couple of them left. Torchwick's forces closed in...

...When suddenly...

***BANG***

Suddenly, a form rocketed off of the containers. The being was fully armored, armed with what appeared to be some kind of alien sniper rifle. It then switched to some other rifle, and began firing a flurry of shots into Torchwick's White Fang soldiers. The man was soon followed by some woman that looked somewhat like some kind of octopus Faunus. The woman glowed purple and black, and fired pulses of the energy at the White Fang. Finally, an armored and robed woman appeared, wielding what appeared to be a Rapid-Fire Cutlass Carbine, and using a Gravity Semblence-wait...Gravity Semblence?

Adam recognized the description of a robed female with a Rapid-Fire Cutlass Carbine and Gravity Semblence: the armor was new, but he knew the description of the young Beacon student Torchwick discredited and got thrown out of Beacon. He didn't know who these other people were or why she was helping them, but now he was somewhat worried, not just for what Torchwick did for the girl...but also...

He watched as the trio of individuals tore into Torchwick's forces: the being in the weird armor launching himself with propulsion jets, stabbing and slicing White Fang with arm-mounted glowing blades, while the octopus Faunus-like woman launching herself using her weird...Semblence?...at White Fang, before taking them down with a mix of martial arts and more of the powers. Finally, the girl directly challenged Torchwick, the 2 fighting on an even playing field...until Torchwick fired a cheap shot, and blew the ground under the girl up. Torchwick aimed at the girl again...and...

'NO!' Adam launched himself forward, and used his sword to block the red dust blast fired by Torchwick. He then charged forward, launching an attack on Torchwick. Torchwick, seeing himself outmatched, called for a general retreat. The White Fang pulled out as he fled as well, loading onto a Bullhead he'd hidden behind several containers nearby, opposite of the entry point of the unknowns. Adam watched as Torchwick left, seething: of the renegades he fled with, only he remained. He cursed himself silently about this. Then, when he looked up, he saw the 2 unknown beings approaching him. He turned to the girl, who he couldn't see the face of, her hood obscuring her face, not to mention the balaclava-like thing she had on her face.

He turned back to the unknowns, one of which, the armored being, said, "We need to talk."

* * *

Maxivius talked to the young man in front of him: apparently, this guy, "Adam Taurus", both according to him and Naomi, was a big-shot in the White Fang terrorist group. Adam filled in the gaps related to the chase he was caught in: apparently, some latent guilt over an incident that led to the defection of his partner and friend finally culminated into him betraying the White Fang, and, with several other like-minded Faunus, left the organization, who sent the other group to eliminate them. Naomi wasn't buying it: she had nothing against Faunus in general, but she held no love, no pity, and no mercy for the White Fang. However, Maxivius noticed something sooner: when Adam Taurus was revealed, Naomi started staring at him with a look of extreme hatred.

Maxivius looked between the human girl and the Faunus man, and frowned behind his helmet. 'Maybe this isn't such a good idea,' he thought, 'These 2 are probably gonna kill each other, more than they're gonna kill the Reapers...'

"So...what you are doing is taking on some kind of interstellar metal space squids-"

"_Giant killer_ interstellar metal space squids," Maxivius corrected, somewhat jocularly.

"Right, anyways, we have to kill their minions, which are gathering in Emerald Forest, as well as having been sighted in Forever Fall?"

"Yes," Maxivius replied, "Since no one else on this world knows about them, other than our comrades, who we don't know where they are, then we have to get help from locals."

Adam thought for a moment, "You know...I remember Torchwick claiming he was attacked by a large green bug-man, just before the start of this year's Beacon classes. It might be the "Retribution" guy you mentioned."

"You sure about this?" Reviane asked, somewhat excited.

"Yes," Adam said, "He mentioned seeing him, as well as a cycloptic robot, a large armored creature, and a human in black armor with an "N7" on it, get escorted away by Beacon Professor Glynda Goodwitch. I would bet they are at Beacon Academy right now."

"Then we should contact Beacon Academy as soon as possible: at the very least, they may have heard where they are," Maxivius said, "I'll go: you guys stay here..." Maxivius then spoke in Turian, so only Reviane, using her Omni-Tool, would understand. "Keep an eye on these 2: something tells me they're more likely to tear _each other_ apart, than they will the Reapers...and Naomi's probably gonna be the one to instigate it...' Reviane nodded, and Maxivius left.

The 2 Remnant natives stared at each other, looks of displeasure on the female's face, one of false imitation displeasure on that Faunus's. Reviane watched them, waiting for the inevitable powder keg detonation, and hoped she'd be able to contain it if it went too far...

Sure enough, as she suspected, Naomi began. "Why are you still here?"

"To make amends..." Adam growled.

"'To make amends...'...is that all you can say?" Naomi replied.

Adam scowled. "Is there anything else I should say?"

"How about what the White Fang is doing about all this? I mean, unless they ARE idiots, they should have noticed SOMETHING going on in the Emerald Forest," Naomi stated.

"They aren't paying any attention to it..." Adam plainly replied.

"Oh, that's rich, either they're complete morons, or you're still holding their secrets," Naomi replied.

"HEY!" Adam yelled, "I left because I no longer agreed with them. If they knew anything, I'd tell you guys what I knew..."

"And why should I trust with you?! Why should I not just take you down like the rest of you White Fang scum?!" Naomi shouted.

Reviane realized it was getting out of hand: she tried to cool the situation down, but no one paid attention. Adam was quite angered. "What the hell is wrong with you?! Yes, I get it: the White Fang are assholes, but why are you going out against me like this?! What'd I ever do to you?!"

That looked like the last straw for Naomi. Before anyone could stop her, she smacked Adam, hard, knocking his modified Grimm Mask off. "You _bastards_ took away my PARENTS!" Then, weeping hard, she stormed off.

Reviane tried to follow Naomi, all the while leaving Adam to nurse where he was smacked, all the while feeling regret for what he had said. He didn't think that this girl could potentially have been a victim of the White Fang...and now he learned it the hard way...

* * *

**There, that's it, sorry it's so short: writer's block is a bitch...**

**I'm sorry about how...jumbled...the last part is, I kinda felt rushed there. Basically: turns out that Adam Taurus, earlier in his White Fang career, was there when Naomi's parents were killed...and Naomi didn't forget...**

**This will make what I have planned for later all the more surprising, but...not gonna say anything else, because, you know, spoilers...**


	11. Chapter 10 - Priority: Vale II

**Hello, and welcome to the weekly installment of RWBY: The Reapers! And, YES, I MADE IT THIS WEEK!  
**

**Now, without further a-do...**

**Chapter 10 - Priority: Vale II**

* * *

The 2 teams from another universe walked out of Beacon and headed for the airships. They were heading down to Vale with Team RWBY, in order to finally get an official tour, after spending...a long while...either locked up in Beacon or hunting Reapers in either the Emerald Forest or Forever Fall.

Not too long ago, Teams RWBY and JNPR have been helping the 2 extrauniversal teams unlock their Auras. This was an especially exciting experience for Enigma and Centurion, as they claim this proves the answer to the Geth's question was "Yes", with irrefutable evidence to back it up: when Blake attempted to unlock Enigma's Aura, she succeeded, proving he had one, and, therefore, a soul. They even remembered Rukar's quip when this happened. "HAH HAH!Well, I'll bet all those Quarians who died during the Morning War are just _rolling in their graves_...HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH..." Lunn gave no comment to this.

Soon afterwards, they all tested out their newly-unlocked Auras, and learned how to use them to defend themselves: the Biotics in the group (Retribution, Rukar, and Drosk) did exceptionally well in that regard, and Enigma, Centurion, and Lunn also did fairly well as well. The others took some time to get used to it, but they managed.

Now, they were heading into town for some well-deserved relaxation, along with one of their groups of friends from this universe. Once the team reached the airships, they found Team RWBY waiting for them. "Hey, over here!" Ruby called out.

When the teams approached, they noticed Weiss seemed to be barely holding in excitement. Retribution gave what equated to an amused look, as Weiss said, "Come on! We don't want to miss the ship!"

The group just followed the Heiress into the ship, and it departed for Vale.

* * *

Once the 3 teams finally arrived in Vale, they started to walk around, and the group noticed people seemed to be readying for a festival. One man, the shopkeeper from the night Team REPR first met Ruby Rose, Glynda Goodwitch, and Ozpin, was setting up a banner across the street that said "WELCOME TO VALE!". Then came the talking.

"The Vytal Festival! Oh, this is absolutely _wonderful_!" Weiss said, with uncharacteristic excitement, much to Team REPR's Collector's amusement.

Ruby seemed nervous. "I don't think I've ever seen you smile this much, Weiss. It's kinda weirding me out..."

"You and me both," Rukar whispered (or as quiet as a Krogan COULD 'whisper') to Ruby.

"How could you _not_ smile? A festival dedicated to the cultures of the world! There will be dances! Parades! A tournament! Oh, the amount of planning and organization that goes into this event is simply **breathtaking**!" Weiss continued in excitement.

"Weiss does appear to be a cultured individual," Enigma analyzed, "Therefore, it is logical to assume that she'd find some excitement in cultural events."

"Thank you, Enigma," Weiss said to the Geth.

Yang sighed. "You both really know how to take a good thing and make it sound boring."

"Quiet, you!" Weiss snapped.

"And THERE'S the Ice Queen we know and almost tolerate," Drosk quipped...almost met with a backhand smack from the "Ice Queen" in question.

Soon, the group reached the docks in Vale. "Remind me again why we're spending our Friday afternoon visiting the stupid docks?" Yang asked.

"Ugh, they smell like fish!" Ruby complained. Rukar just licked his chops. Pierson just shook his head at that.

"I've heard that students visiting from Vacuo will be arriving by ship today. And, as a _representative_ of Beacon, I feel as though it is my _solemn_ duty to welcome them to this _fine_ kingdom!

As Weiss walked away, Blake and Enigma said together, "She wants to-" They looked sharply at each other. Enigma bowed and backed off, and Blake repeated, by herself, "She wants to spy on them so she'll have the upper hand in the tournament." Enigma nodded in response.

Weiss scoffed. "You two can't prove that!"

"Really? Try me," Enigma challenged. Enigma became well known around Beacon for being able to "dig up dirt on anyone", and reportedly knows more secrets than he lets on. Knowing this, Weiss backed off.

"Whoa." Ruby's comment brought everyone's attention to a crime scene. Ruby approached a detective in front of a robbed store. "What happened here?"

"Robbery. Second Dust shop to be hit this week. This place is turning into a jungle." The detective went to rejoin his partner.

"That's terrible," Yang replied.

Enigma approached and scanned the area. "Money still in the register: Dust taken in massive amounts...this is similar to the robbery Retribution, Ruby, and I broke up when we first arrived."

"Yeah, just doesn't make a lick of sense. Who needs that much Dust?" the group heard one of the detectives say.

The second detective replied, ""I don't know, an army?"

"You thinking the White Fang?"

"Yeah, I'm thinking we don't get paid enough."

"Hmm! The White Fang." It was Weiss speaking now. "What an awful bunch of degenerates!"

"What's _your_ problem?" Blake snapped.

Weiss replied, irritably, "_My_ problem? I simply don't care for the criminally insane."

"The White Fang is hardly a bunch of psychopaths," Blake replied, crossing her arms. "They're a collection of misguided Faunus."

"Misguided? They want to wipe Humanity off the face of the planet!" Weiss snapped.

"So then they're _**very**_ misguided. Either way, it doesn't explain why they would rob a Dust shop in the middle of downtown Vale!"

Ruby tried to intervene to calm everyone down. "Hmm... Blake's got a point. Besides, the police never caught that Torchwick guy Retribution, Enigma, and I ran into a few months ago... Maybe it was him."

"That still doesn't change the fact that the White Fang are a bunch of scum," Weiss said, ignoring Blake's rising anger, "Those Faunus only know how to lie, cheat, and steal."

"That's not necessarily true..." Yang tried to say, before she was interrupted.

"Hey, stop that Faunus!"

The group turned to see a Faunus on a boat, beingchased by the sailors. The Faunus appeared to have a golden monkey tail.

"Thanks for the ride, guys! Haha!" the Faunus said.

"You no-good stowaway!" one sailor snapped.

The Faunus hung upside down on a lamppost and ate a banana. "He's REALLY going for the "monkey" image, isn't he?" Drosk said.

"Hey! A _no-good_ stowaway would've been caught! I'm a _great_ stowaway!" the Faunus quipped.

"Hey!" Weiss shouted to Retribution, "You can do that..."Biotics" stuff...why can't you use it to stop him?!"

"This amuses me..." Retribution said. Weiss had a hard time NOT envisioning Retribution with a troll face on right now.

"Hey! Get down from there this instant!" one of the detectives said, but the Faunus dropped the banana peel on his face, and the Faunus ran off, passing Teams REPR, CTDL, and RWBY, none of them making a move to stop him. He seems to look at Blake and wink as he passes by, before running off into the distance.

"Well, Weiss, you wanted to see the competition, and there it goes..." Yang quips.

"Quick! We have to observe him!" Weiss replies.

Weiss, Yang, Ruby, and Teams REPR and CTDL give chase while Blake stands still, lost in thought, before coming back to reality and following everyone. The teams round the next corner, but then Weiss and Lunn bump into someone and trip. Weiss gets up only to see the Faunus escape, while Lunn quickly looks over his suit, before sighing in relief, seeing no suit breaches.

"No, he got away!" Weiss groans.

"Uhh... Weiss?" Yang says, pointing out the person Weiss and Lunn tripped over.

"Sal-u-ta-tions!" the girl the duo tripped on commented.

"Um... hello," Ruby said.

Yang then asked, "Are you... okay?"

"I'm **wonderful**! Thank you for asking," the girl replied. Most of the group found the girl to be quite weird. Ironically, the only 1 who didn't find her weird at all was Centurion: he seemed more amused than anything.

He flashed his 3 face lights in sequence. Over their consensus connection, Enigma replied, "Laugh it up, Triclops."

"Do you... wanna get up?" Yang awkwardly asked.

The girl seems to have to _think_ about it for a moment, before answering, "Yes!" and getting up. "My name is Penny! It's a pleasure to meet you!"

"Hi Penny. I'm Ruby."

"I'm Weiss."

"Blake."

"Are you sure you didn't hit your head?" Yang's first comment earned her a jab from Blake. "Oh, I'm Yang."

"I am known as Retribution."

"Platform-37x, designation "Engima"."

"Pierson Chancellor, at your service."

"Rukar, Battlemaster of Clan Wraksan!"

"Tiara Rogers, nice to meet you."

"Drosk Dosnahal. Batarian Slasher."

"Lunn'Fanaar vas Vera, of the Quarian Flotilla."

"Platform-174c, designation Centurion. A pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"It's a pleasure to meet you!" Penny said to them.

"You already said that," Weiss commented.

Penny paused again. "So I did!"

"Well, sorry for running into you!" Weiss said, before running off.

The others ran off, with only Centurion and Ruby stopping briefly. "Take care, friend!" they both said, before sharply looking at each other, then following the others.

"She was... _weird_..." Yang said, after the group was out of earshot of Penny.

"I find eccentric being the more appropriate adjective," Centurion commented.

Enigma looked at him and narrowed his main optic. Through their connection, Enigma stated, "You _like _her!"

"At least mine's synthetic like myself..." Centurion responded over the connection, smugly.

Enigma glared at the Juggernaut for a moment, as Weiss asked, "Now, where did that Faunus riff-raff run off to?"

Suddenly, Penny appeared again. "What did you call me?"

Weiss seemed to spaz out, looking back to where Penny was before, and where she was now. Yang then sputtered, "Oh, I'm really sorry, I definitely didn't think you heard me!"

"No, not you." Penny then advanced on Ruby and Centurion. "**You two!**"

Ruby seemed startled. "_Me?_ I-I don't know. I, what I, um, uh..."

"You called me 'friend'! Am I _really_ your **friend**?"

"Uuuum..." Ruby seemed to think a moment, as the rest of Team RWBY tried to get her to deny it. "Y-Yeah, sure! Why not?"

As Weiss, Yang, and Blake seemed to momentarily faint, Centurion added, "Affirmative."

Penny looked ecstatic, and directed the first comment to Ruby. "Sen-sational! We can paint our nails, and try on clothes, and talk about cute boys!" Then, she turned to Centurion. "And we can talk about...well...what your people talk about!"

While Penny's attention was on Centurion, Ruby asked Weiss, "Oh, is this what it was like when you met me?"

"No - she seems _far_ more coordinated," was the answer.

"So... what are you doing in Vale?" Yang asked.

"I'm here to fight in the tournament," Penny answered.

"Your platform does not strike me as combat capable," Enigma stated.

"Looks can be deceiving! I'm combat ready!"

"Forgive me, but you hardly look the part," Weiss stated.

Blake replied, "Says the girl wearing a dress?"

"It's a combat skirt!" Weiss indignantly replied.

"Yeah!" Ruby responded, appearing next to Weiss, the latter offering a low-five, and Ruby following through.

"Wait a minute." Something seemed to strike Weiss.

"Oh, by whatever deity watches this world, not this *unknown Prothean expletive* AGAIN!" Retribution muttered under his breath.

"If you're here for the tournament, does that mean you know that monkey-tailed rapscallion?" Weiss asked.

"The who...?" Penny asked.

"The filthy Faunus from the boat!"

"Why do you keep saying that?!" Blake asked angrily.

"Huh?" Weiss asked.

"Stop calling him a rapscallion! Stop calling him a degenerate! He's a person!"

"Oh, I'm sorry. Would you like me to stop referring to the trash can as a trash can? Or this lamppost as a lamppost?"

Retribution's eyes dimmed. He was about to advance when Pierson stopped him. "Just...let it play out: they'll get no where if you keep going in and scaring her into submission."

"Stop it!" Blake exclaimed at Weiss.

Weiss responded with equal irritation, "Stop _what_? He clearly broke the law. Give him time; he'll probably join up with those other Faunus in the White Fang!"

Blake growled. "You ignorant little _brat_!"

"How dare you talk to me like that! _I_ am your teammate!" Weiss replied, offended, as Blake walked off.

"_You_ are a judgmental little girl."

"What in the world makes you say that?"

"The mere fact that you would sort that Faunus boy with a terrorist group solely based on his species makes you just as much of a scoundrel as you believe him to be!"

Yang slid up beside Ruby, and said, "Um, I think we should probably go..."

"Where are we going?" Penny asked.

They slid off just as Weiss yelled at Blake, "So you admit it! The White Fang _is_ just a radical group of terrorists!"

"That's not what I meant, and you know it!" Blake replied in anger.

Teams REPR and CTDL also moved to escape, with Ruby and Yang.

* * *

"I don't understand _why_ this is causing such a problem!" Weiss exclaimed.

"That _is_ the problem!" Blake retaliated.

"Oh, for the love of whatever deity is here, I would willingly give myself to Harbinger if it would make these two SILENCE THEMSELVES!" Retribution exclaimed in annoyance and frustration, but his exclamation fell on deaf ears. He, the rest of Team REPR and Team CTDL were all with Team RWBY in their room, there in case things got out of hand.

"You realize you are defending an organization that hates Humanity, don't you? The Faunus of the White Fang are pure evil!" Weiss countered.

Blake huffed. "There's no such thing as pure evil! Why do you think they hate Humanity so much? It's because of people like Cardin, people like _**you**_, that force the White Fang to take such drastic measures!"

"People like _me_?"

"You're discriminatory!"

"I'm a victim!" Weiss exclaimed in retaliation.

"Really, how?" Retribution snapped.

Unlike before, Weiss didn't miss a beat. She continued, nearly uninterrupted, "You want to know _why_ I despise the White Fang? Why I don't particularly trust the Faunus? It's because they've been in war with my family for years. War, as in _actual_ bloodshed. My grandfather's company has had a target painted across its back for as long as I can remember. And ever since I was a child, I've watched family friends disappear; board members executed. An entire train car full of Dust, stolen. And every day, my father would come home, furious. And that made for a very difficult childhood." After hearing that, with the anger and sadness she said it in, it was hard for the group to really blame her anymore.

"Weiss, I-" Ruby tried to enter in, but couldn't as Weiss shrugged her off.

"No! You want to know why I despise the White Fang? It's because they're a bunch of liars, thieves, and murderers!"

"Well maybe **we** were just tired of being pushed around!" That stopped everyone cold.

"_We?_ What are you talking about?" Rukar tactlessly butted in.

"I... I..." Blake muttered before running out the door.

"Blake, wait! Come back!" Ruby called, as Yang sat down, Weiss looked down, and Teams REPR and CTDL seemed conflicted over what to do.

"What now?" Retribution pointedly asked Pierson, in a way that said 'Your fault for trying to stop me earlier'.

"Well...errr...Enigma, back me up on this..." The group then looked around: the Geth Hunter had also disappeared.

* * *

Blake ran outside, and found herself at a statue of an armored man with a sword and a hooded woman wielding an axe on an outcropping. She, in particular, looked at the Beowolf right under them. As she stood there, she removed her bow, showing her Faunus cat ears once more. She neared the point to where she'd start crying.

"I _knew_ you would look better without the bow." Blake was startled by the voice, and looked up, seeing the Faunus from before. However, further up the statue, she noticed a familiar red optic. The Faunus soon dropped down next to her, shortly afterwards followed by Enigma, who landed with a thud. "Tall, dark, and cyclops here wanted my help finding you. Name's Sun, by the way..."

"Blake..." Blake replied. She then turned back to Enigma. "I...don't think I can go back, yet...you should probably tell the others that..."

Enigma then activated and fiddled with his Omni-Tool for a minute. When he came out of it, he paused for a moment, before saying, "I told them I didn't find you yet, but I'd keep looking. Until then, however, I'm deactivating my homing beacon. You need to talk, Blake." He turned to the monkey Faunus, then back to Blake, "And we will listen..." Sun nodded eagerly, a smirk on his face, giving Blake cause to smile a little, despite her tears.

* * *

**Well, that's it for this chapter, hope you enjoyed.  
**

**A lot of people had guessed a Ruby x Retribution thing going...Like I said, however, that doesn't go full-swing for a LONG while (probably not until this story's sequel, or maybe later, or if I can figure out how, carry out my plans to make it less awkward...), but, you guys should probably be guessing a pairing more...closer to present...by now... ;)**


	12. Chapter 11 - Priority: Vale III

**Welcome to the next chapter of RWBY: The Reapers...And why is it everyone finds Retribution with a Troll Face so amusing? idk people sometimes...**

**Well...onto...**

**Chapter 11 - Priority: Vale III**

**/**

**Armiger: Tension**

* * *

In the warehouse that Maxivius claimed as their team's headquarters, Adam wandered around the catwalks. This reminded him of the warehouses the White Fang took and used as their bases, until they were hunted down. Adam watched the others in the team from above: the aliens Maxivius and Reviane conversing, in front of some holographic display, and Naomi, pacing on a lower catwalk below. He remembered the confrontation he'd gotten into with Naomi a while back, and it really began eating at him.

This girl lost everything, _everything_, because of the White Fang, Roman Torchwick, or some combination of the two. Adam didn't notice this, and it ended in the girl pretty much hating him...well, hating him more than she already did: she already harbored a hatred for the White Fang and its members, although all he managed to do was antagonize it further.

Realizing that her hating him would make this job a LOT harder than it needs to be, he decided, begrudgingly, to try patching things up. He slipped over the rail of his catwalk, landing behind Naomi on the one below...resulting in the robed girl to draw Gravitas Puteus, and point it at Adam. 'Not my best idea,' he thought to himself.

The girl narrowed her eyes under her 'Recon Hood', and asked, "What the hell do you want?"

Adam stifled his displeasure at the way she said it, and responded, "To apologize for what happened the other day."

"Oh, is that all?" Naomi replied, in an angry voice.

Adam glared at her, blocked by his mask, although Naomi seemed to know, as she seemed to be doing the same thing. After the 2 stared at each other for a while, Adam asked Naomi, "What happened?"

"What do you mean?" Naomi asked suspiciously.

"What happened after the White Fang killed your parents? What did you do?"

Naomi glared at him. "Is this some kind of trick?"

"No, it's not," Adam said, "However, if we're going to have to work together, might as well as least _TRY_ to get along..."

Naomi crossed her arms. "I see...but, really, I don't feel like telling you about my past. MAYBE, if, and I MEAN _IF_, I can come to trust you enough, or you do something that makes me want to tell you, I'll talk...But, as it stands, I still don't trust you..." Naomi left, but Adam could already see slightly less animosity from the girl.

"Let's just hope we're not all dead before you decide to talk..." Adam muttered to himself.

* * *

Teams RWBY, CTDL, and REPR were in Vale, searching for Blake...again. Since she'd disappeared a day or 2 prior, Blake hadn't returned to Beacon, and Enigma had totally dropped out of contact. Since then, they've been looking. Team CTDL had broken off to follow some leads Drosk had. "_Hey, as a Batarian, I NEED my underground contacts..._" the Batarian used as his excuse. Since they could use them now, no one was complaining...anymore...

"They've been gone all weekend..." Ruby stated worriedly.

Weiss countered, "Blake's a big girl, I'm sure she can handle herself! As for Enigma, I'm certain Mr. 'Alien Cyclops Robot with stealth gear and a sniper rifle that shoots molten metal through reinforced steel' can take on anything that tries to throw itself at them."

"Weiss, come on, Blake's one of our teammates. And we haven't heard back from Enigma."

Weiss answered sharply "Is she? We all heard what she said!"

"Weiss..." Ruby groaned.

Pierson added, "I don't think we should just assume things, Weiss. Although, on the topic of Enigma, he DID say he was maintaining radio silence, which means we SHOULDN'T expect hearing back from him, unless there's trouble. The fact that we haven't heard back from him is a GOOD thing..."

"Thanks Pierson. However, Weiss, maybe she is, maybe she isn't. Either way, she's missing, and we need to find her!" Yang replied.

"A member of the White Fang! Right underneath our noses!" Weiss griped.

"Or a FORMER member, trying to stay hidden," Retribution countered, from under his cloak.

Ruby said, worriedly, "I just hope she's okay..."

"I'm sure we all are," Retribution added.

* * *

Blake, Sun, and Enigma were near a tea shop, Enigma in the cloak he obtained his first day here. Both Blake and Sun were drinking tea, as Enigma fiddled with his Omni-Tool. Finally, he heard the sound of a cup on a saucer, and saw Blake had put her cup down. She then looked at both individuals looking at her, and asked, "So, you want to know more about me..."

"Finally, she speaks! Nearly two days and you gave me nothing but small talk and weird looks!" Blake then gave Sun a look. "Yeah, like _that_."

That earned the Faunus a swat from Enigma. "Please, continue."

"Thank you...Enigma, Sun...Are you familiar with the White Fang?" Blake asked.

Enigma spoke first. "Accessing: The White Fang is a formerly-peaceful pro-Faunus Movement that has since degraded into a terrorist organization for unknown reasons."

"Of course!" Sun replied, "I don't think there's a Faunus on the planet who hasn't heard of them. Stupid, holier-than-thou creeps that use force to get whatever they want. Bunch of freaks, if you ask me!"

Blake took a sip of her drink, before revealing, "I was once a member of the White Fang."

Enigma let out an alarmed stuttering sound, while Sun went cross-eyed and began choking on his drink. "Wait a minute, **you** were a member of the White Fang?!" Sun exclaimed.

Enigma sat silent before saying, in an analytical voice, "In retrospect, this makes sense: the advanced combat style, your defense against Weiss's claims."

"That's right. I was a member for most of my life, actually. You could almost say I was born into it...Back then, things were different. In the ashes of war, the White Fang was meant to be a symbol of peace and unity between Humans and the Faunus. Of course, despite being promised equality, the Faunus were subjected to discrimination and hate. Humanity still thought of us as lesser beings."

Enigma processed this. "You fought for your freedoms, and, despite earning some, you were denied others."

"That's right. And so, the White Fang rose up as the voice of our people. And I was there. I was at the front of every rally. I took part in every boycott. I actually thought we were making a difference. But I was just a youthful optimist. Then, five years ago, our leader stepped down, and a new one took his place. A new leader, with a new way of thinking."

"The move to terrorism," Enigma surmised.

"Yes...Suddenly, our peaceful protests were being replaced with organized attacks. We were setting fire to shops that refused to serve us, hijacking cargo from companies that used Faunus labor. And the worst part was, it was working. We were being treated like equals. But not out of respect...out of fear."

"Fear only works so far: soon ,those that fear you will destroy you for that fear."

"That's one of the many reasons why I left. I decided I no longer wanted to use my skills to aid in their violence, and instead, I would dedicate my life to becoming a Huntress. So here I am: a criminal hiding in plain view, all with the help of a little black bow."

"Except from those who can scan genetic code," Enigma stated.

"You only knew I was a Faunus, you didn't know my history with the White Fang."

"Touche..."

"So... have you told your friends any of this? You know, other than Mister Tall, Black, and Flashlight Headed..."

Enigma facepalmed. "I thought I escaped that when I came to this world..."

* * *

"Blaaaake!" Ruby called.

"Blaaaake!" Yang followed.

"Hey, come out!" Rukar called.

"Blake! Enigma! Where'd you two go?!" Pierson called as well.

"Blaaaaaaaake! Where aaaare yoooouuuu!?" Ruby screamed.

"Blake!" Yang called once more.

Teams RWBY (minus the B) and REPR (minus the E) have been searching for a long while, with no luck. While Yanfg, Ruby, Rukar, and Pierson called out, Retribution would try to search out for Blake's aura. As for Weiss...

"Weiiiiss, you're not helping!" Ruby whined.

"Oh! You know what might be able to help? The police!" That earned Weiss one of Retribution's 'frightening glares'.

"Ugh, _Weiss_..." Ruby groaned.

Weiss replied, "It was just an idea!"

"A pitiful one," Retribution countered.

"Weiss, I think we should hear her side of the story before we jump to any conclusions," Yang said.

"**I** think that when we hear it, you'll all realize _I_ was right!" Weiss countered.

Retribution then said, irritated, "I think you are jumping to baseless conclusions!

"And I think Weiss' hair looks _wonderful_ today!"

The surprise voice caused the group (minus Retribution) to jump, and swiftly turn around (again, except Retribution, who slowly and calmly turned), seeing Penny, with Centurion next to her. "Hey, Centurion, what're you doing here?" Pierson asked.

"Team CTDL discovered Penny while searching. We split up, to cover more ground: myself and Penny in one group, and my team in another."

"Yeah, he mentioned you were looking for the Faunus girl!"

Teams REPR and RWBY stared at Penny. "And how did you come by this information?" Retribution asked, staring at Centurion with an accusatory glare.

"She deduced it herself," Centurion answered in self-defense.

"Yeah, you didn't notice the cat ears?" Penny added.

"What cat ears? She wears a... bo_ooohhh_..." Yang said, the revelation coming to her.

There was a gust of wind, and a tumbleweed passed by. "Strange plant-life for a city," Rukar said.

"She does like tuna a lot..." Ruby added.

"So, where is she?" Penny asked.

"Kid's been gone since Friday," Pierson answered, "Enigma went to find her, but we haven't heard from him since."

"That's terrible! Well, don't you worry Ruby, my friend! I won't rest until we find your teammate!"

"Uh, that's really nice of you, Penny, but we're okay! Really! Right, guys?" Ruby replied...but Teams RWBY and REPR, barring Retribution, left without her.

Retribution then commented, "You _really _should have expected this, Ruby."

Another tumbleweed passes by...but Retribution, in annoyance, incinerates it with Prothean's Wrath. "Damnable mobile plant matter..."

* * *

Sun, Blake, and Enigma had since left the place they were having tea at, and were now discussing what they were going to do.

"So, what's the plan now?" Sun asked.

"I still don't believe the White Fang is behind these robberies. They've never needed that much Dust before," Blake replied.

"They could be planning something big," Enigma said, "Or it could be as Ruby said, and it is Torchwick's doing."

"What if they _did_? I mean... the only way to prove that they _didn't_ do it, is to go to the place where they would most _likely_ go to if they _were_ to do it, and not find them there! Right?"

"The only thing is, I've no idea where that would be," Blake commented.

Enigma then said, "We should try to find areas with excessive Dust Stores. Do you have a place in mind, Sun?"

"You bet I do: I heard some guys talking about offloading a huge shipment of Dust coming in from Atlas, you know, back on the ship I stowed away on."

"How would you describe the size of the cargo?"

"_Huge_. Big Schnee Company freighter."

"There: we can either prove or disprove that the White Fang is responsible, and you could potentially return to Weiss Schnee's good graces by saving one of her family's cargo shipments."

"You're sure?" Blake asked.

* * *

Yang, Weiss, and Rukar exited the store whose owner they had asked if they saw Blake.

"Thanks anyways!" Yang said.

"Yeah, call us if you do see her!" Rukar added.

Yang sighed. "This is hopeless." She then saw Weiss looking at her nonchalantly. "You really don't care if we find her, do you?"

"Don't be stupid; of _course_ I do. I'm just afraid of what she'll say when we find her. The innocent never run, Yang!"

Then Rukar butted in, but with one of his rare, insightful comments. "Only when there's nothing to run from, Weiss: misgivings and bad circumstances can have the innocent labeled as guilty, and when that happens, they will sometimes run, if only to escape the punishment that isn't theirs. Or maybe they might run to pursue who is responsible, and try to set things right: the innocent do run sometimes, Weiss...but only when circumstances are trying to screw them over." With that, Rukar walked off, leaving Weiss to thoughtfully ponder what the normally-boisterous Krogan just said.

* * *

Ruby, Penny, Retribution, and Centurion were all still searching for Blake as well. While they did, Penny asked the group some questions.

"So, Blake is your friend?"

"Affirmative," Centurion commented.

"She is," Retribution simply replied.

Ruby sighed. "Yes, Penny."

"But you're mad at her?" Penny asked

Ruby answered, "Yes. Well, we're not. _Weiss_ is."

"Is _she_ friends with Blake?"

"Unknown at the present time," Retribution commented.

Centurion clarified, "Recent circumstances are threatening to form a rift in the team."

"But _why_?" Penny asked.

Ruby answered, "Well, you see, Blake might not be who we though she was..."

Penny gasped. "Is she a **man**?"

Centurion made a stuttering notice, Retribution's eyes glowed in shock, and Ruby sputtered, "No! No, Penny. She's..."Ruby then stopped and sighed. "I don't know what she is. She didn't exactly talk to us before she decided to run off."

"I don't have a lot of friends, but if I did, I would want them to talk to me about things," Penny said.

Ruby looked down sadly. "Me too..."

Ruby then felt a hand on her shoulder, followed by Retribution's voice. "So would I, but considering circumstances..." He then looked off in the distance, "I can see why Blake fled..."

* * *

Tiara, Drosk, and Lunn remained together after Centurion and Penny left, and soon met up with Pierson when he fled from Penny. The group was now searching through the city for Blake.

"Dammit! Where is that kid?!" Drosk yelled impatiently.

"She's _hiding_, Drosk," Lunn answered, "You thin she'd make it EASY to find her?k"

"I don't get it: why IS she running?! Sure, she's probably former White Fang, but...WHY is she running?"

They heard an angry huff, and they turned around, seeing an angry Tiara behind them. "You find it surprising she reacted EXACTLY as I did when you found out my secret?"

"I-We-You...I..." was all Lunn could say before Tiara pressured onwards.

"She accidentally let slip she was once a member of a terrorist organization universally hated by even her own race. How did you guys react when you found out I was ex-Cerberus?" The group looked down in shame: they knew they had been in a similar situation: Tiara's secret almost tore them apart, especially after a member of their team pushed things too far. "Delia never trusted me again, and when she was in anger on Noveria, that mistrust led to her _death_..."

"Yeah...I miss her..." Drosk said forlornly, missing his closest companion, the aforementioned Asari Adept, who died when she wouldn't let Tiara help her on Noveria, after learning she was ex-Cerberus.

"So...let's get going, we can't have Team RWBY go through what we did, and I'll be _damned_ before Weiss becomes the next Delia..."

* * *

Naomi was waiting on her catwalk again. It'd been a day or so since Adam came and talked to her. She was surprised at how...cordial...the Faunus was being. She suspected he was training to lull her into a false sense of security, of course, but...something about his voice sounded...sincere...

She tried to push these thoughts out of her head; the White Fang killed her parents, something she'd never forgive them for, and he used to be White Fang...use to be...

"Naomi..."

It was _him_ again..."What do you want?"

"To find out why you're still up here...I at least expected you to talk to either of the aliens," Adam replied.

"Why the hell are you talking to me?" Naomi said, exasperated.

"Because if they end up partnering us up, I'd not like what happened with my last partner to occur here..." Adam said.

"Oh, and what happened to your partner?" Naomi asked.

Adam stared at her a moment, through his mask, before offering, "I'll tell you what: I tell you what happened to my old partner, and you tell me something of your past. Deal?"

Naomi thought about it a moment. 'I guess it's reasonable...' she inwardly groaned. "You first..." she finally answered.

"It was half a year ago: we were on a job to attack a Schnee Dust Corporation train. She and I-"

"That was YOU?! It was all over the news!" Naomi interrupted in shock.

"Hey, you wanted this story, so shut up..." Adam replied, "anyways, we managed to take down the main guard AK-130s. Then..."

There was silence for a moment. ""Then..." what?" Naomi asked.

"I told my partner I would set the charges to blow the train. She worried about the crew inside...and...I said..."

Silence again. "You said...what?"

Adam looked at her, and said, "I said, "_What about them?_"" Naomi seemed indifferent about this, as though expecting it. "My partner reacted in horror at this, and we were attacked by an AK-170 Tarantula. We took it down...then she left. I tried to call out to her but all she said was 'Goodbye' before severing the car she was on from the rest of the train...I still don't know what happened to her...Ever since then...a feeling of guilt gnawed at the back of my mind. At first, I didn't notice it...but now..." He then removed his mask, revealing pained, tired eyes. "It's almost unbearable."

Naomi could see the regret in his features, true remorse written on his face clear as day. As though subconsciously, she pulled down her hood and removed the Recon Hood she wore, revealing her face to him. He looked at her a moment, before saying, "Life hasn't been kind on you, hasn't it?" Naomi just shook her head sadly.

Then, a look of determination came into Adam's eyes . "Don't worry. I want to make things right...helping you pick your life back up again may be a good first step."

Naomi didn't know what to feel. On the one hand, she didn't want this ex-White Fang's help...but, after talking to him...

"You still didn't tell me your story..." Adam said, a small smirk of amusement on his face.

"Well...you see..." She then sighed, "After my parents were killed-"

They were interrupted when Maxivius came up. "I'm sorry to break up the bonding fest, but I need to ask: how do you two feel about striking at the White Fang?"

The duo looked at each other, and Adam nodded. Naomi looked at Maxivius, and said, "We wouldn't mind..."

"Good, because we have a situation on our hands..."

* * *

_"Portal 50% uncovered."_

_"Sufficient native wildlife converted."_

_"Power Source concentration identified."_

_"Initiate attack."**  
**_

* * *

**Well...that doesn't sound ominous at all...*end sarcasm*  
**


	13. Chapter 12 - Priority: Docks I

**Edit: Changed the scene where Ruby, Retribution, Penny, and Centurion see the explosion.**

**Ok, onto the next chapter...But first: The reviews:  
**

**mastermind: Well, good news: there WILL be a Shepard cameo...bad news: it won't be until the Epilogue...**

_**So...everything changes...**_

**Chapter 12 - Priority: Docks I**

* * *

It was night, and Blake and Enigma were laying on their stomachs overlooking the Schnee Dust containers. Soon, Sun rejoined them.

"Did I miss anything?" Sun asked.

"Not really. They've offloaded the crates from the boat. Now they're just sitting there," Blake replied.

"Cool." Sun was holding some apples in his arms. "I stole you some food!"

"That does seem troubling," Enigma added.

"Do you always break the law without giving a second thought?" Blake asked.

"Hey, weren't you in a cult or something? And didn't your race nearly wipe out your creators?" Blake gave him an angry glare, and Enigma drew his Plasma SMG, and pointed it in Sun's general direction. "Okay, too soon!"

During this argument, however, the heard the sound of wind blowing, and they spotted Bullheads coming in, descending into the middle of the cargo containers...before disgorging White Fang troops.

"Oh no..." Blake said.

"Is that them?" Sun asked.

"Affirmative," Enigma answered.

Sun then asked, "You really didn't think they were behind it, did you?"

"No. I think deep down I knew. I just didn't want to be right," Blake replied. Enigma placed a hand on her shoulder, and gave her a comforting nod.

"Hey! What's the holdup!?" The yelling interrupted the moment. "We're not exactly the most inconspicuous bunch of thieves at the moment, so why don't you animals try to pick up the pace?" It was Torchwick.

This shocked Blake. "This isn't right. The White Fang would never work with a Human. Especially not one like that." She then unsheathed the katana of Gambol Shroud before leaving.

"Hey, what are you doing?!" Sun asked, as Enigma activated his Tactical Cloak and Hunter Mode, following.

"No, you idiot! This isn't a leash!" Torchwick yelled at one of the White Fang, as Blake snuck up on him. "What the- Oh, for f-" Then, Blake held a blade to his neck.

"Nobody move!" Blake threatened, the White Fang brandishing their weapons in reply.

"I do not think so. Lower your weapons," Enigma said, his Tactical Cloak dispersing, revealing him holding a Geth Spitfire, with Plasma Shredder close enough to grab quickly.

"Whoa! Take it easy there, little lady and...robot."

As the White Fang closed, Blake removed her bow, revealing her cat ears. "Brothers of the White Fang! Why are you aiding this scum?"

The White Fang hesitated, although a few kept weapons trained on Enigma. "Oh, kid, didn't you get the memo?" Torchwick then said.

"What are you talking about?"

"The White Fang and I are going in on a joint business venture together!"

Tell me what it is or I'll put an end to your little operation."

Suddenly, the sounds of more Bullheads approaching appeared. "I wouldn't exactly call it a _little_ operation..."

As Blake watched in shock, Torchwick managed to fire his cane at Blake's feet, making an explosion. "ENGAGING!" Enigma declared, with what could be described as anger in his voice, revving up his Spitfire.

* * *

Ruby, Penny, Retribution, and Centurion were still searching for Blake...when they heard a noise. Looking up, they saw the tell-tale signs of an explosion from the docks not far from where they were. "Oh, no..." Ruby said.

"Sensors detect Dust Weapons fire..." Centurion said, scanning, before exclaiming, "And Geth Weaponry!"

"Enigma!" Retribution said.

"Let's get over there, maybe Blake's there!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Alright. Let us get to it!" Penny added, and the quartet ran towards the smoke.

* * *

Maxivius looked up, and saw a small explosion. "That can't be good."

Reviane said, "We must get moving if we're going to get there in time!"

"Looks like they beat us to it..." Adam said.

"Then we'll stop them, this changes nothing," Naomi said, determined.

Adam looked at her and smiled. "Indeed."

* * *

Blake managed to land unharmed, and begins avoiding Torchwick's attacks, as she notices Enigma letting loose on the White Fang with his Spitfire. Soon, she retreated behind some containers.

"Here, kitty, kitty, kitty..." Torchwick taunted, before having a banana peel fall on his face.

"Leave her alone!" Sun declared, landing on Torchwick's face and vaulting off it.

"You're not the brightest banana in the bunch, are you, kid?" Torchwick said, as more White Fang arrived.

The White Fang charged Sun, but Sun pulled out a collapsible staff composed of linked shotguns, and started laying waste to the White Fang.

Torchwick then turns his attention to Sun, and prepares to fire, but his shot is interrupted by a spread of Spitfire shots.

"He's mine!" Blake called.

"No," Enigma stated, "Let's do this together!"

Blake didn't argue and she engaged Torchwick with her katana, while Enigma drew Plasma Shredder and turned it into its melee mode. "So, the robot has a new toy, huh?!" Torchwick taunted. Blake quickly maneuvered around Torchwick, using her after-image Semblence to distract Torchwick and try to find a weakness. At the same time, Enigma used his enhanced strength and maneuverability to keep Torchwick on edge. However, Torchwick managed to get a good hit in, knocking Blake out of the fight. However, her place was quickly taken by Sun, who began his own assault, blasting him with his nunchuck shotguns, until he knocked Torchwick down.

However, Torchwick managed to hit a container on a crane, forcing Sun to dodge to where he'd be in the path of Torchwick's weapon, and Blake and Enigma too far to help.

Just then, a pair of voices rang out.

"Hey!"

"Stop right there, criminal scum!"

The group looked, and there, on a nearby roof, stood Ruby and Retribution.

"Well, hello, Red! Isn't it past your bedtime? And my, Green, taking up babysitting, are you?"

"Ruby, are these people your friends?" Penny asked.

"Penny, get back!" Ruby yelled, but this distraction gave Torchwick the chance to shoot at Ruby, knocking her back.

"NO!" Retribution called, but he was hit soon afterwards, leaving him unable to act as well.

Then, Ruby, Retribution, and Centurion saw the look on Penny's face: she was giving Torchwick a spiteful glare. Penny then advanced.

"Penny, wait! Stop!" Ruby called out.

Penny just replied, "Don't worry, Ruby. I'm combat ready!"

"And I have her back," Centurion said, pulling out his Spitfire, as Penny's backpack split open, revealing blades. Leaping from the rooftop with the weapons acting as wings, Penny sent three of her swords to knock two White Fang soldiers down before even landing on the ground. While Penny did that, he dropped to the ground in front of the building, and used his brute strength to take down some of the White Fang. Just ahead of the Geth Juggernaut, Penny proceeded to fling her swords at one enemy, impale another to a wall, create a barrier of spinning steel against a running attack, leapt over a goon with her swords in tow, and finally making a wheel that she throws to knock multiple Faunus off their feet.

"Whoa!" Sun gasped.

"Impressive," Enigma analyzed, as he observed from next to Blake.

Six Bullheads come from the skies and open fire on the battle, but Penny merely formed a shield and launches two of her swords into the wall behind her, next to Centurion, who was setting up a Hex Shield to defend himself, and a Geth turret, while also charging Siege Pulse. Then, the swords pulled Penny back with their strings. When her swords swirled around her again, she commanded them to open their points and build up a large glowing ball of green light. With a punching action, several bright lasers crack the pavement when they fire at the transports and slice 2 in half, causing several of the White Fang members inside to fall and letting Ruby watch as Bullheads fall in pieces behind her. At the same time, Centurion's Turret opened fire, destroying another 2 Bullheads.

Stunned, Ruby turned back to Penny and Centurion as the former aims her swords at one of the remaining Bullheads holding the crate of Dust and pulled back on their wires, tugging the aircraft with them. At the same time, Centurion continued charging Siege Pulse.

"Whoa... How is she doing that?"

Penny, after her large green pupils dilate for a second, pulled with all her might on the strings, and the aircraft crashed into a stack of crates, causing an explosion as a result. At the same time, Centurion finally unleashed Siege Pulse, which by that point, was powerful enough to take down the Bullhead in one shot.

"These kids and aliens just keep getting _weirder_..." Torchwick decided, as he boarded one of the Bullheads. His lifted off first, and made its escape. The second one soon loaded up and prepared to lift off...

...Only to get intercepted by metallic feathers, which knifed through the airship.

Blake, Sun, Enigma, Ruby, Retribution, Penny, and Centurion, who'd grouped back up by now, looked up in shock...as a large, Reaperized Nevermore, carrying an equally-Reaperized Deathstalker, flew into the local airspace. Two more of the Reaper Nevermores flew in, carrying Guardians. "No..." Retribution muttered.

"What do we do now?" Ruby asked, fearfully.

Just then, they were joined by the remainders of Team RWBY, REPR, and CTDL. "What else? We kick them to the curb!" Rukar stated.

"Yeah, let's hit them with everything we got!" Yang added.

The Reaper Nevermores began dropping their loads, the Reaperized Grimm charging the group. Ruby observed the battlefield, before turning to Centurion and Penny. "You think you two can handle those Nevermore Reapers?"

"Yes, ma'am!" Penny responded enthusiastically. Centurion nodded and joined her.

The group watched as the Reaper Deathstalker approached. "Alright, get ready..." Ruby said to the others.

Retribution, however, noticed something. The Deathstalker wasn't approaching too fast, and why was it turning its tail towards-"TAKE COVER!" Retribution called, moments before the tail illuminated and fired a stream of molten metal at the group.

"Oh, that's just PERFECT!" Drosk called out sarcastically, "Scorpions with guns for tail stingers, like we need THAT in the world!"

"But that means there's not stinger, and if there's no stinger...Yang, Weiss, Blake, come on!" Ruby then led an attack on the massive Deathstalker Reaper.

Retribution then nodded to the others. He then turned to Centurion. "You take one Taijitu, we take the other!"

"Sounds like a plan," the Juggernaut replied. The 2 groups then split up between the Reaper-controlled Grimm.

Centurion's group chose a heavy-assault style attack, with Centurion pouring in fire, Tiara keeping the team supplied using supply pylons and attacking with grenades, Drosk blasting it with Warps, and Lunn striking hard with his Adas Anti-Synthetic Rifle. The Reaperized Grimm was similar to a Reaper that Team CTDL fought before: while Team REPR hunted down a the rogue super-Mauler, Team CTDL took out where in Forever Fall the huskified Grimm came from. Since the thing was guarding a facility, they were officially dubbed "Guardians". Nevertheless, the group fought the behemoth, and were holding it back.

Team REPR took a less direct approach, with the team dashing in and out of battle, striking the Guardian, 'killing it with bug bites'. As Retribution darted in and out using Collector's Rage, Enigma zig-zagged using Truestrike at range. Pierson used Gungnir as well and Rukar kept firing with Shredder Maw. Their tactic seemed to work, as soon, cracks appeared in one head's armor. Rukar quickly charged in, turning Shredder Maw into its hammer mode, slamming down on the crack, and firing the shotgun feature, sending flechettes into the breach. At the same time as Rukar shredding the Guardian's first head, the remaining 3 took on the other, as Retribution used his Biotics to try to breach the armor, efforts that, due to backup from Enigma and Pierson concentrating fire on Retribution's target area, succeeded. Soon, their Guardian was down, and Team REPR moved to support Team RWBY, who were doing alright, but still having trouble.

The Deathstalker Husk, while it tried to keep its distance, tried plowing into the team of girls whenever they got close, forcing them to keep their distance. Because of it trying to constantly bulldoze them, they were forced to remain beyond the tail cannon's minimum range. This meant Yang was diminished in effectiveness and Weiss was nearly useless, other than support REPR closed on the Deathstalker Bulldozer and began to attack, their weapons causing some (but not much) more effect than Team RWBY's. They then heard a loud shriek, as a Reaper Harvester flew overhead, dropping conventional Reaper Troops and Collector forces, with some Praetorians accompanying.

"The game's afoot..." Pierson commented, as he and his team continued trying to attack the Deathstalker husk.

Ruby and the group tried another charge attack, while Team REPR had it distracted, but again, it was met with a plowing attack, which hit Ruby head-on, knocking her away from the group. She recovered quickly though, but the enemy began to close on her.

Ruby dodged a Brute's charge, but a Banshee approached...just as a large, armored form flew in. When it landed, it released a shockwave that knocked back the Reaper forces. Ruby got a good look at the individual: it was tall, with weird legs, and 3-fingered arms. Its helmet was long, and had what appeared to be an area for a crest inside it. The Reapers that began to attack it were then attacked by biotic hits. A Biotic Charge appeared...and a being Ruby remembered being identified as an Asari appeared, before taking down the Shredder it hit.

Then, weapons fire attacked another Shredder, as a black-robed individual wearing armor and wielding a Rapid-Fire Cutlass Carbine charged in, attacking the Reapers. Finally came a guy in Systems Alliance Infiltrator armor, armed with a weird sword with a gun for a sheath. Then, the armored alien individual ran to Retribution, and said, "Retribution, good to see you're still kicking."

"Maxivius?" Retribution question.

"Reporting for duty!" the Turian Havoc replied. The Turian looked around. "Got natives mixed up in this too, huh?"

Retribution nodded. "Team RWBY is highly skilled for their age. They managed to, working with Team JNPR, take down a Brute earlier during our time here. Then, we started training them, after Jaune of JNPR took down a Mauler single-handedly."

"Mauler?"

"Reaperized Ursa. A VERY large, bear-like Grimm.

"Impressive," the Turian replied, "Let's see if we can turn the tide! Reviane! Naomi! Adam! ENGAGE!"

"Roger, Maxivius!" Reviane called.

"Let's kick 'em to the curb!" Naomi yelled back.

"Let's show them what we're made of," Adam added.

When Blake heard Adam, she seemed shocked. 'It...it can't be...can it?' she thought, before shaking the thought from her mind, and rejoining the fight.

Maxivius's team charged into the fray: Maxivius jump-jetted into a cluster of Husks and Shredders, sending some flying, killing others, and wounding the rest. Reviane began firing Biotic Warps into the clusters of husks, Naomi opened a singularity in the middle of some husks while wormholing across the battlefield, and Adam found himself face to face with a brute.

The massive Husk flung its massive arm at the former White Fang lieutenant, but Adam tanked the blow...and began to glow with red lines. Blake gasped. 'It IS him...no one else has that ability!' she thought. The Brute charged at Adam, and responded by slashing his sword through the Brute...causing it to be reduced to wilting petals.

Adam finally noticed Blake, and her shocked expression. Realizing she knows who he was, Adam told her, "Listen, Blake, we can talk about this later. Right now, we have Reaper Husks to demolish."

Blake nodded in response, but suddenly...everyone heard a scream in pain. The group's heads collectively shot in the direction of the scream...and they watched in horror, as a Praetorian got the drop on Ruby, impaling its limbs into both sides of her torso, and her upper right leg. It then proceeded to drag her up into the air.

"NO!" Yang screamed, before the rest of Team RWBY, as well as Penny, joined her in screaming, "RUBY!"

Retribution stood in shock and horror at this. Many emotions welled up inside him: pain, sadness, despair...rage...The rage began consuming everything else. He felt angry, his Aura pulsated. Then, he felt something: his Aura, reaching out to Praetorian. It was like the feeling just before Harbinger possessed a Collector, only in reverse. 'My Semblence...' Retribution realized.

He knew what he had to do...his confidant, his ally, his _BEST FRIEND_, would _DIE_ if he didn't...so...he reached out with his Aura, into the Praetorian, and, as he prepared to surge it with power, as if on instinct, loudly announced 3 simple words...

_**"ASSUMING DIRECT CONTROL!"**_

* * *

**OOOOOOoooooooooo! Cliffhanger! What will happen?! Will the Reapers take the docks? Will Ruby survive? What the hell is Retribution doing saying Harbinger's catch phrase?**

**Find out in the next installment of RWBY: The Reapers!**

**Sorry if the battle doesn't seem...actiony...enough, but it's imagining battles that is my strong suit: describing the battles I imagine...not so much...**


	14. Chapter 13 - Priority: Docks II

**Alright, here comes this week's edition of RWBY: The Reapers. When we last left off, our heroes were fighting the Reapers at the docks, but now Ruby's in danger as she's caught in a Praetorian's execution move. However, Retribution, focusing on the Praetorian, is now saying Harbinger's quote...why: let's find out...**

**Chapter 13 - Priority: Docks II**

* * *

_**"ASSUMING DIRECT CONTROL!"**_

Ruby heard the voice, as she believed death was near, and closed her eyes as the beaked mechanism's head shot at her's...but the hit never came...She opened her eyes, to see the Praetorian, whose beak was mere millimeters from her head, now covered in green lightning and its eyes green instead of blue now...just like...

She then looked up, and saw Retribution shooting an almost-transparent green beam from his hand into the Praetorian...and soon the thing released her, and backed away from her. Another Praetorian and some Collectors saw this, and advanced on her, to try to finish her off...only for Retribution to reply with another beam to the second Praetorian and some more to a third of the approaching Collectors.

_**"I am assuming direct**** control****,"**_ Retribution said in his deep, synthetic 'scary voice', _**"We are the Avatar of Vengeance."**_

He said the second part, as the affected enemies grouped with him...and he pointed...and they charged. That's when it hit her: she remembered the phenomenon from when Retribution described Harbinger's abilities, particularly his ability to 'possess' Collector and Reaper soldiers. 'And Retribution's Semblence let's him do so too...' Ruby thought, in awe, before the pain of her wounds finally caught up with her.

She collapsed into a heap on the ground, but soon, someone ran over to her, and she heard Tiara say, "Don't worry, kid, you'll be alright..." as she blacked out.

* * *

"Kid's out cold!" Tiara called, "But she'll live!"

Retribution was both overjoyed and angry: Ruby was alright, he acted in time...but the fact she was wounded..._**"Destroy them all! Destroy the Reapers'**** puppets!"** _the Awakened Collector ordered the Semblence-controlled Collector Units. The remainders of Team RWBY were engaging the Deathstalker Husk, as Retribution diverted a Praetorian to aid them. The second Praetorian went airborne to intercept the Reaper Nevermores, while the Collectors engaged their former compatriots, as well as the husk troopers and Reaperized Grimm.

Retribution watched as the new soldiers began to spread out, the Collectors peppering Collector Troopers, Husks, and Shredders with Collector Assault Rifle and Collector SMG fire. The Praetorians attempted to attack their targets, the ground combat one with its legs, the aerial combat one with its particle beams. Retribution overlooked the battlefield, and his new soldiers, even though they were outnumbered, very much turned the tide.

He then looked among the field at Team RWBY's members, and barring Ruby being put out of action by a Praetorian, they were easily holding their own, especially with the new reinforcements.

Then, Retribution heard something. **"ASSUMING DIRECT**** C****ONTROL!"**

Then, he saw it: a Collector cloaked in gold/orange lightning. Harbinger. **"THIS IS WHAT YOU FACE****,"** Harbinger stated.

_**"Then you have no idea what kind of trouble you are**** in,"**_ Retribution countered, drawing Prothean's Wrath and Collector's Rage, and turning them into their melee forms.

**"Weapons modified with native mechanics. Interesting. Research will commence once Rifles obtained from your**** corpse."** Harbinger then used Biotics to retrieve 2 fallen swords from defeated White Fang troops.

_**"You'll have to kill me first,"**_ Retribution countered, as he charged to engage Harbinger's Collector.**  
**

The swords clashed, as Harbinger wreathed his in Biotics. The clash sent both individuals back, as they continued to charge and clash. One overhead swing from Retribution, one cross-strike from Harbinger. The duo dueled with their blades with a lot of skill, Harbinger from the individuals contained in him, Retribution from weeks of practice with Team RWBY and Team JNPR.

**"Your skill is ****interesting****. It would be beneficial**** absorbing ****that**** knowledge,"** Harbinger stated.

Then, Retribution spewed, in his normal voice, "OVER MY DEAD CORPSE!"

**"We will arrange that,"** the Reaper replied, before continuing the clash.

The duo continued to strike, Retribution spinning like a Whirling Dervish, while Harbinger's Collector struck with powerful, brute-force strikes. One strike, however, knocked Retribution back onto the ground, with barely any time to react. He managed to raise his swords in time to block another hit.

He was knocked to the ground once more, his blades knocked from his grasp. Harbinger advanced on him, but Retribution had one final trick. When Harbinger reached him, Retribution struck with a surprise attack from his Seeker Swarms. The Seeker Swarms did their job, distracting the Collector with their surprise appearance and attack.

With Harbinger stunned, Retribution fired a Dark Matter Dark Sphere at the Reaper's vessel, ultimately destroying it. As it faded, Harbinger stated, **"We are not finished. We will return."**

_**"And I'll be**** waiting..."**_ Retribution countered. He relinquished control over the Collectors and Praetorians he took control of, and he looked around, and saw the battle finally end: Team RWBY and the Praetorian managed to take down the Deathstalker Husk; Penny, Centurion, and the second Praetorian managed to drive off the fliers, and the rest of the group took down the rest of the husks. He then looked at Ruby, who was still severely injured, but appeared to be regaining consciousness. Retribution approached her. "Are you alright?" he asked Ruby.

Ruby painfully nodded. "Yeah...fine...still hurts...Did...we win?"

Retribution answered, "Yes, we have won: the Collectors and Reapers have been driven off...for now..."

Suddenly, the sound of Yang's weapons re-activating was heard. "Not all of them it seems," Yang said.

The group turned...and saw some Collectors and 2 Praetorians approach, the same ones Retribution was controlling not too long ago. The group readied for a fight, but one of the Collectors, a Collector Captain, approached. There was silence for a moment...before...

"You...freed...us..."

* * *

Teams REPR, CTDL, and RWBY, as well as their backup from the docks, were in Beacon's clinic, since the meeting required Ruby's presence, yet she was still too injured to leave. Fortunately, since there were no other students with injuries, and the whole 'doctor-patient confidentiality' thing meant the cameras in the room could be shut off, it was still a viable place for a meeting.

"So, first you intercepted the White Fang at the docks, then you were attacked by the Reapers, using standard, Collector, and Grimm forces? Am I getting this right?" Ozpin asked.

"Uh-huh..." Ruby responded. She was still injured, and in pain, with her 'impaled with extreme prejudice' right leg still almost non-functional, but she was strong enough to partake in the debriefing. "During the Reaper fight, that's when the others arrived."

Ozpin then turned to the other group. "And you are...?"

The 2 cloaked and masked members lowered their hoods and removed their masks. The head of the group, though, an armored 'Turian', as Retribution called him, stepped forward and said, "I am Commander Maxivius Sylmus, 26th Turian Armiger Legion, Turian Havocs. My compatriot here is Asari Commando Vanguard Reviane Besus. And these 2 natives are-"

"I know who they are," Ozpin stated, his gaze turning to the young female in alien armor. "Naomi Delacroix. Was initiated into Beacon 2 years ago, but was expelled due to supposed involvement in a heist in a store in Vale..." Tears came to the girl's eyes, and a distressed expression came to her face. "...A load of hogwash if you ask me." The girl's eyes shot open in confusion and a hint of relief. "I was merely unable to confirm your innocence legally, but I had a lot of doubt you actually took part, Gravity damage or not: you didn't seem the type. And I'm sure your participation in fending off a major attack from a hostile force SHOULD be enough to earn you a pardon...and maybe a chance to re-apply to Beacon. I'm sure there's enough here for me to be able to pull that off."

Hope filled eyes that seemed to have been devoid it for far too long. She lowered her head, tears streaming from her eyes, and in a cracking voice that still gave off some sense of relief and joy, said, "Thank you...Beacon was the only home I had when my parents died...and I can finally come home...Thank you!" before she fell apart, crying tears of joy. The Asari seemed happy for the girl, as did the Turian, if the curt nod he gave was any indication.

The last member of the group even seemed a little happy for her...although when Ozpin's gaze fell upon him, he immediately brought up a rigged, serious façade. "And you, I know all too well," Ozpin stated, trying to (and ALMOST succeeding in) reign in the displeasure in his voice, "Adam Taurus. Former Lieutenant of the White Fang. Last known to be responsible for a train robbery along with an unknown accomplice." Weiss looked at the former White Fang Lieutenant with an intense, spiteful glare, while Retribution noticed Blake was trying TOO hard to look innocent right there, but he said nothing. "While Naomi would have no issue receiving a pardon for what she'd done tonight, you on the other hand, might have some more issues."

"Expected," Adam replied, "I am more than willing to give some intel on the White Fang, if it'll help."

Ozpin raised a suspicious eyebrow. "Why be so forthcoming with the information?" he asked, skeptically.

"You said it yourself: I am a _former_ Lieutenant of the White Fang. A while back, my partner..." he gave a VERY quick look at Blake that only the Geth and Retribution would notice, before continuing, "...defected from the White Fang and disappeared into the public, sickened by what she'd been doing as part of the White Fang. Even heard she started going to an Academy much like Beacon to train to be a Huntress as her redemption."

"I see..." Ozpin stated, "And I take it you're following her example?"

"It took a little longer for the message to reach me, but when it did, myself and some like-minded Faunus left the White Fang...although it wasn't a clean get away: only I made it out alive, and, if it wasn't for Maxivius's intervention..." he nodded his head in the Turian's direction, "...I wouldn't have made it either."

"I see..." Ozpin stated, crossing his arms, leaning back in his chair and thinking. "I'll see what I can do about you, but I still have some suspicions."

"I don't blame you: I was once a higher-up in the White Fang; I'd be suspicious too," Adam said.

"Glad we have an understanding," Ozpin stated plainly, nodding. He then turned to Maxivius. "So...what about you guys? What are you going to do?"

Maxivius then looked at Retribution and Centurion, who nodded to him, before turning back to Ozpin. "If it's not too much to ask...I'd like my team to have a chance here at Beacon." Ozpin raised an eyebrow at the request, but not in a suspicious manner, more a curious one than anything. "Retribution has already stated he and his team are trying to aid students in fighting the Reapers. Felt having another team that'd faced them would help out. Naomi and Adam have been working with us for some time now. Naomi, for a few weeks, Adam for over a week. Both of them have fought Reapers before last night, so we could easily aid in teaching how to fight the Reapers."

Ozpin thought it over, and, after taking a look at Adam, before turning back to the Turian Havoc, nodded. "Alright. Initiation for the 4 of you will be tomorrow...or 3 of you, of course, if Ms. Delacroix-"

"I have no problems with redoing Initiation, since I won't be able to go back to my team, anyways," Naomi interrupted, having finally settled down over her 'joyful meltdown' earlier.

"Alright then, well, like I said, the 4 of you have your Initiation tomorrow, I suggest spending the rest of the day preparing. Maybe having your..." He pointed at Maxivius and Reviane. "...Weapons modified up to Remnant Standards. Enigma and Centurion should be able to help you there, and Ms. Rose as well, if she recovers enough to move around before the day's out. She was, in fact, responsible for most of the weapons modifications for Teams REPR and CTDL, only needing Enigma's, Centurion's, and Retribution's help with specific weapons. Now, we must break up this meeting, and Centurion and Retribution, if you can come with me."

"Might I ask why, Ozpin-Professor?" Centurion asked.

"I have to meet with General James Ironwood of Atlas, and a few other individuals. They're meeting about the Reaper attack that occurred at the docks...and a few other locations: several other places, all of them with mined dust stores were struck by Reaper forces last night. The kingdoms are ALL now in a state of emergency...and we could use 2 people with knowledge of the Reapers there."

"Then I might as well go too," Maxivius stated, "As a Turian, military operations are my life, so I might be able to add some input there."

"Then follow along, and hurry. This meeting could decide the fate of all Remnant."

* * *

Roman Torchwick slammed his fist into the table. He was pissed at the White Fang. He was pissed at Cinder. He was pissed at those kids, aliens, and robots. He was pissed at those techno-zombie things that demolished and ransacked his store houses. He was pissed at EVERYTHING!

"Damn it! Why the HELL is this happening NOW?!" Torchwick shouted in anger.

"You seem upset, this a bad time?" The unknown voice lead to Torchwick taking Melodic Cudgel and aiming it where he heard the voice...only to come face to visor with 4 soldiers, decked in white, gold, and black power armor, all wielding similarly-colored SMGs...all pointed at him. In the middle of the 4-soldier box formation was a walking robo-holopad, producing the hologram of a middle-aged man in a business suit, with a cigar, and neon-glowing eyes. He took a puff of the cigar, before saying to Torchwick, AND his own soldiers. "If we can lower the weapons, we might be able to have a civil discussion here." The soldiers immediately lowered their weapons.

Torchwick wasn't as quick, but, once he was sure they weren't going to attack, he placed the cane back on the ground. "And you would be..."

"Someone who thinks they can solve your problem," the holo-man replied.

"And how could you do that?" Torchwick said.

The holo-man snickered. "What would you say if I told you I was from the same universe as the 'aliens and robots' giving you trouble."

"I'd be doubly sure I am suspicious of why you'd want to help me."

"They are also my enemies, standing in the way of progressing humanity to its rightful place among the stars," the holo-man replied, "And if those 'kids' are allying with them, that makes them obstacles too."

Torchwick thought about it for a moment. "Ok, what can you provide?"

"Weapons, resources, some of our technology and ships," the man replied.

"You mean...water craft, or airships or..."

"Starships, Roman-May I call you Roman?"

"Whatever, but-Wait...'starships?'" Torchwick was startled by that possibility.

The man took a puff of his cigar. "Managed to sneak 4 cruisers, one of older make, past the Reaper excavation team on Ontarom, currently hovering somewhere over the ocean, making their presence unknown to everyone. Agree to help me and I can hand the older cruiser over to you, with its compliment of weapons, thermal clips, resources, and vehicles intact. So, Roman, do we have a deal?"

Torchwick thought it over. It was definitely a sweet deal. But every sweet deal isn't free..."What's the catch?" Torchwick asked.

"Your aid in logistics and other matters: as a native, you have better knowledge of the political climate, locations, native resources, etc, that my organization can use. Basically: our universe's tech, for knowledge on your world."

"Alright then, seems fair. You have a deal, Mr...uhm...can I at least get your name and the organization you work for...or whatever people call you?" Torchwick asked the man.

"Of course...The organization I am associated with is called 'Cerberus', and I...around where I come from, I'm known as...The Illusive Man..."

* * *

"Unknown Collector renegade interfered in battle."

"Unknown renegade exhibiting unknown energy field and possession ability."

**"Harvest of other races takes priority. Divert to deal with this new threat, and prevent it from interfering."**

"Directives clear."

"Locate all using unknown energy field, and eliminate them."

* * *

**So, how exhilarating was THAT?! The main cast finally takes on an actual Reaper Attack, the Reapers are making themselves known, Maxivius has FINALLY regrouped with the main cast, the first of the Mass Effect Characters' Semblences is revealed (and it's a BIG one)...and someone's sticking their nose in Remnant's business...**

**The Retribution vs Harbinger battle was thrown in at last minute, but I thought it'd be interesting. I'd suggest re-reading it (from when Retribution hears Harbinger's arrival to Harbinger's defeat) while listening to "Duel of the Fates"...used it to help me write it...  
**

**Finally, this is where we reach the end of where the story follows canon RWBY events: as of now, EVERYTHING changes...**


	15. Chapter 14 - Priority: Emerald Forest II

**Welcome back to your weekly helping of RWBY: The Reapers. As you can see here, chapters featuring Maxivius's group are NO LONGER referred to as "Armiger" chapters, since the group has now grouped up with the main cast, and will now be labeled under the 'Priority' tag.  
**

**But first...ONTO THE REVIEWS!**

**Shotgun Steve: The Illusive Man was mainly there to seal the deal: he still has to deal with stuff in the ME universe, so he's not gonna be on Remnant for the full battle...meaning any incompetence that MAY occur will not be his fault...  
**

**thermalsnipern7: Shepard's busy at the moment...but don't worry: Cerberus isn't going to get anything easy here.**

**edboy4926: Probably around 7 or so Troopers, 1 Captain, and 2 Praetorians, I was thinking...**

**Ok, now that that's done, onto the chapter!**

**Chapter 14 - Priority: Emerald Forest II  
**

* * *

Maxivius and his team walked towards the cliff outside Beacon. The group had been sleeping in the quarters that was assigned to them. When they came to breakfast, they expected trouble, considering Maxivius couldn't eat the same food as everyone else...until they realized that Beacon already had some Dextro recipes. Maxivius felt glad that Lunn had gotten here before him to prompt that.

When the group arrived, both Ozpin and Goodwitch were there, and the former had a serious expression. "We planned on having your Initiation be like that of your companions, but it appears we're going to have to mix things up. Last night, one of our first year student teams, Team RPTR (A/N: pronounced "Raptor"), reported being attacked by the White Fang, including soldiers wearing unknown white and gold armor, and last we heard, they were driven into Emerald Forest. In case you didn't hear, Emerald Forest is the primary hotbed for Reaper activity, and I fear for what could be happening for those students in there."

"I assume you want us to head in there, and see if we can rescue them?" Maxivius guessed.

"That's right, like usual, you will enter the forest, and we were able to determine the team was heading for the temple where we usually keep the Relics for Initiation. Once you get there, bring them back. We can't risk sending a Bullhead in due to the presence of Reaper Air Patrols, Teams REPR and CTDL are busy helping double-timing their training of Teams RWBY and JNPR, and those Collector units Retribution freed are being trained themselves and their weapons modified. Furthermore, the members of Team RPTR are very powerful, rumored to be of greater skill than even Teams RWBY and JNPR, and as such could prove to be vital to our war effort. Therefore, we had no choice but to have your Initiation-"

"Double as a rescue mission. I understand, sir," Maxivius replied.

"Good to hear. Now, stand on these platforms, and we will send you in momentarily. Just be sure to set up your landing strategy." Ozpin then waited for them to get into position. Naomi nearly said something, but Ozpin interrupted her. "Best let them figure it out on their own." Naomi closed her mouth and nodded.

"Uhm...just what is he talking abo-**BY THE SPIRITS**!" Maxivius exclaimed as he was shot into the air. Soon, Naomi was the last one on the ground.

She gave Ozpin a wide smile, as she pulled out her Recon Hood. "Again...thanks for everything, especially this second chance..." she said to the Headmaster.

"You deserved it," Ozpin said, nodding, and Naomi was launched into the forest seconds later.

* * *

The quartet flew through the air, towards the forest. Fortunately all 4 had something planned.

* * *

"Alright," Ozpin said, watching from his scroll, "Let's see what they can do..."

* * *

Maxivius watched as the ground approached, and when he came close, he activated his jump jets, soon enough to slow his descent to prevent him from splattering. Rolling forwards once, then twice, as he landed, he stopped feet first, and broke into a run upon landing.

* * *

"Impressive. You'd think he'd done something like this before," Goodwitch stated.

Ozpin replied, "I wouldn't be surprised: Team REPR told me that the Turians were a military hierarchy, so to be a ranking officer in their military makes me think Maxivius Sylmus must be good at this sort of thing."

* * *

As Reviane neared the ground, she concentrated her Biotics towards slowing her descent. Utilizing her biotics in some kind of reverse Biotic Charge, she slowed her descent to the point to where she gently floated to the ground.

* * *

"Well, not the first time Biotics were used to slow someone down," Goodwitch stated.

Ozpin nodded. "Yes, although the energy given off by Reviane seemed less than Drosk. She must have more experience with her Biotics to prevent her from needing to use as much power."

* * *

Adam allowed himself to dive towards the forest, before taking out his sword, and using it as leverage to redirect his fall, and then to slow his descent, until he reached the ground, allowing him to get a running start upon landing.

* * *

"I still believe we should keep an eye on him," Goodwitch stated, watching the former White Fang lieutenant.

Ozpin stated, "Never said I disagreed. Still...that was rather impressive..."

* * *

Naomi utilized her Semblence to create a gravity sphere around herself, making herself light as a feather, as she shot towards the ground. When she landed, she did so in the middle of a pack of Shredders. Using her Gravity Semblence, she unleashed a gravimetric shockwave around herself, crushing the Shredders in the pack that she landed in.

* * *

"Looks like she improved on her original landing strategy," Goodwitch said, impressed.

Ozpin commented, "She's been on the run for a time, from both the police and the White Fang, she probably developed this for dealing with the latter. She would have had to adapt to survive."

* * *

Maxivius charged through the forest, his Phaeston Assault Rifle at the ready, as he gunned down any Reaper Troop, Creature of Grimm, or horrific abomination of the 2, he came across. He quickly scanned the forest around him as he charged, on the lookout for any of his people, the Temple, or any signs of Team RPTR. As he continued onward, however, he began to hear a combination of gusts of wind, roars, and clanging, and felt a feeling of cold. As he approached a clearing, however, a hand held him back.

"Quiet," Reviane stated behind him, "Looks like you found them as well."

"'Them'?" Maxivius asked, and he peaked into the clearing. In the middle was 2 individuals: the first was a girl, probably around 16 or 17, with blueish hair, wearing a cloak over a white shirt and black combat skirt, and wielding a staff, shooting cold air around, freezing Shredders. The second one was a 17 year old man in crystalline armor, that resembled a construct Maxivius heard of called the 'Giant Armor'. The armor was transparent black in color, and was accompanied by a matching sword, which the man swung at an approaching Mauler, decapitating it. However, the Reaper-Grimm seemed to have them surrounded. and they were vastly outnumbered. "You think they're members of Team RPTR?" Maxivius asked.

"Only one way to find out," Reviane stated, "But we have to wait for the proper time to enter the fight, otherwise we won't be much better off."

The duo waited for a good opportunity to strike. However, the defending duo seemed to be wearing out. When the blue-haired snow girl began to weaken, Maxivius just said, "Screw this! We can't wait any longer!"

"Agreed," was the response Maxivius heard from the Asari, as he rocketed forward with a Havoc Strike at a Mauler, while Reviane aimed at another with Biotic Charge. The appearance of these 2 new adversaries, armed with more effective weapons caught the Reaper Troops off-guard, and, a few minutes of mowing the troops down later, the rest of them retreated.

Soon, the duo were approached by the kids, the male taking point, his armor shattering, and revealing his long-sleeved shirt and pants underneath. "Thanks for the save, but who are you?" he asked.

"I'm Commander Maxivius Sylmus of the Turian Hierarchy Military, and this is Reviane Besus, Commando Vanguard of the Asari Republic. We are undergoing an Initiation/Rescue Mission for Beacon Academy. Our team's looking for the members of Team RPTR."

"Then your job's half-done: I'm Percival Phalanx of Team RPTR, and this is my partner, Tabitha Helene, also part of Team RPTR."

"Appreciate the assistance," Tabitha said plainly and simply.

"Well, that's good to hear," Maxivius stated, "I hope the other 2 members of our team are able to find the rest of your team."

"Initiation..." Tabitha stated, the 2 aliens looking at her quizzically.

Percival, however, understood. "You said your mission was part Initiation. What did you mean?"

"These...things...you fought were not normal Grimm, as you could probably guess: they're an abomination made by a race of beings known as the Reapers. The Reapers came from our universe, and we-"

"Hold up, 'our universe'? You mean to tell me you came from another universe as well?" Percival asked, skeptically.

"Yes, actually...you already know about our universe?"

"REPR and CTDL," Tabitha plainly said.

Percival added, "People still find it hard to believe, I can count with the fingers on my hand the number of teams from _ALL_ years that believe them. And all of them had direct interaction with the team before."

Maxivius understood at that point. 'Word of their origins must have spread like wildfire...' Maxivius said. "Anyways, like I was saying, we came here first, then they came, so we're trying to help teach Hunters and Huntresses how to fight them. For myself and my team to do so, we need to be applied into Beacon, like our brethren in Team REPR and Team CTDL, who have already taken Teams RWBY and JNPR under apprenticeship."

"RWBY and JNPR, both groups that seems to ALWAYS get into whatever mess is going on..." Percival said in an amused tone, "So...what now?"

"We find our way to the Temple. With luck, the rest of our teams should already be there."

* * *

Naomi looked around at the devastation she left fighting the Reaper-Grimm that attacked her. Chunks of flesh, blood, bone, and cybernetic surrounded her, and even so, she swept the forest with carbine. She heard a roar, turned around, readied to fire on the Mauler charging...only for another form to shoot past it, slashing the Reaper-Grimm, killing it.

"Hope I got here in time," Adam stated, before looking around. "You can be quite destructive when you want to be."

"Whatever..." Naomi groaned, "Any luck?"

"I spotted the Temple we're looking for nearby, and I heard signs of a battle there. We should hurry," Adam stated.

"Agreed," Naomi stated. The duo then charged into the forest, Adam slashing and shooting the Grimm they came across, and Naomi doing similar, only throwing some gravitic singularities into the mix once in a while. Finally, the group arrived at the open-air damaged structure...to see 2 individuals standing in the middle, performing what could be described as a last stand, as the Reaper-Grimm charged their position. One was a 17 year old man garbed in what was best described as a gas mask, riot gear, and a duster. He was armed with a pair of pistols that he occasionally turned into combat knives which he used when a Reaper-Grimm got too close. The other was a 17 year old Faunus girl using some kind of bladed bow that could turn into a sword, with neon-green hair and glistening green eyes, as well as some chitinous growths growing from her ears, making them long and pointed. She was garbed with a green shirt with short, puffy sleeves and a white combat skirt.

The duo appeared to be holding their own, but the Reaper-Grimm were slowly creeping closer. "We have to help them!" Naomi cried before attempting to charge, only for Adam to hold her back.

"Wait for it..." Adam replied, confusing (and slightly angering) Naomi. Before Naomi could surge forward, however, another form broke the treeline: a Reaper-ized Deathstalker, named "Bulldozer" by intelligence. "Now!" Adam called, charging out from hiding.

'He must have smelled it coming,' Naomi realized, remembering the superior sense of smell possessed by the Faunus, before following. The duo charged the Bulldozer, intercepting it before it could reach the Temple. The defenders seemed shocked by the sudden arrival of these unexpected reinforcements, but quickly got back to work. The 2 ex-criminals brutally attacked the Bulldozer, which appeared to be smaller than the one that Team RWBY fought the other night, signifying it may have been made from a much younger Deathstalker. Still, it proved difficult to beat, but, fortunately, after a brief skirmish, it was taken down.

Finally, once the Bulldozer was killed, they noticed that the other duo had finished off their attackers, and were now approaching. The male in the gas mask spoke first. "Nice to see someone came to look for us, but who are you?"

"I am Naomi Delacroix, and this is my partner, Adam," Naomi stated.

The faunus girl raised an eyebrow. "Naomi Delacroix? As in the same Naomi Delacroix who was kicked out of Beacon due to involvement in a robbery?"

"_Supposed_ involvement," Adam corrected, "Recent evidence came to light that suggested she was framed, and helping with the battle at the docks earned her a pardon from the city."

"I see..." the Faunus stated, a hint of relief in her voice.

"Anyways, I'm Raiden Kennedy, and this is my partner, Rena Sanddragon. I'm the leader of Team RPTR."

"That's good to hear," Naomi stated, "Our mission was to come in to find you and return you to Beacon."

"After what happened, you were allowed to return to Beacon?" Raiden asked.

Naomi nodded. "Yes, in fact, this rescue mission was also the makeshift 'Initiation' for my team."

"Interesting," Raiden stated, as Rena continued observing Adam.

Then, Rena's eyes widened in shock. "You're Adam Taurus, a Lieutenant of the White Fang!"

"What?!" Raiden snapped, pointing one of his pistols at the armored Faunus.

"Now, hold on!" Naomi stated, "I don't like it either, but...he supposedly defected from the White Fang, and _unfortunately_ is part of the same team as me..." She muttered the word 'unfortunately' because, even though the duo made up, she still was not happy with working with him.

Raiden stared at the duo for a minute or so, before stating, his voice laced with venom, "We'll clear this up with Ozpin _after_ we get out of here."

"Understood," Adam replied, before the group made to leave, before, then, another group burst from the forest.

"Keep firing!" Maxivius called, firing his Phaeston Assault Rifle into the forest behind him, Reviane following suit with her Cerberus Harrier. Accompanying them were 2 more individuals, a male with red hair and blue eyes, followed by a young woman with blue hair and teal eyes.

"There's the rest of our team!" Naomi called.

"And our's too!" Raiden yelled, "But what's chasing them?!"

Then, a large form burst through the forest: a massive, cybernetically-augmented elephant-like creature. "FUCK!" Naomi vehemently cursed, "Reaperized Goliath! The LAST thing we need!"

"Suggested tactics?!" Maxivius called to her.

"Pack up, turn around, and get the FUCK out of here!" Naomi answered, sheathing her now-Cutlass Gravitas Puteus, and running, Adam and Team RPTR following suit. Maxivius and Reviane fired a little more into the rampaging creature, and fled shortly after.

* * *

The octet arrived at an old set of ruins. There was signs of a battle here...including 5 brutalized Reaper Brutes. The damage inflicted caused Maxivius to realize these must have been the Brutes Teams RWBY, JNPR, REPR, and CTDL fought during their initiation. 'What a fitting place to be cornered by a Reaperized version of the mother of all Grimm...' Maxivius thought cynically.

Once they reached the cliff, they turned around, to see the Reaperized Goliath exit the forest and charged, using a node on its trunk to fire a blast at them. The group scattered, and the Reaper-Grimm surprised everyone with its maneuverability, deftly turning away from the cliff before it can fall. It charged Maxivius, but the Turian Havoc merely jetted out of the way, sending the Reaper-Grimm smashing into a rock wall behind. The creature pulled itself away from the wall, as the teams regrouped. "Isn't there anything we can do to stop that thing?!" Maxivius asked.

"I don't think so," Naomi stated, "Normal Goliaths are powerful enough already, needing a LOT of firepower to put down. A Reaperized one has GOT to be near-invincible!"

"Near-invincible is NOT the same as completely invincible," Reviane stated, "It HAS to have a weakness!"

"How I WISH we had Lunn's Anti-Synthetic Weapons right now!" Maxivius stated. He thought for a moment, before realizing something. "Hey, Adam. You think that whole 'slash and turn them into petals' thing might work on this guy?!"

"I'm unsure: we might have to damage it before it'll work, and even then, I'd have to absorb that energy blast its firing!" Adam replied.

"Then let's kick it up a notch!" Raiden replied, taking out what appeared to be a POWERFUL sniper rifle, aiming it at the Reaper-Grimm as he charged to the left, firing a powerful armor-piercing lightning dust shot at the Demolisher. The Reaperized Goliath roared and attacked, but as struck by a pair of singularities, one by Reviane that threatened to pick it up off the ground, the other by Naomi that tried to crush it. Both failed, and, while they caused damage to the powerful Reaper-Grimm, it still kept coming.

Soon, Adam fired on it. "Take your best shot at me!" he taunted, drawing his sword. The Reaper-Grimm charged its attack, playing into Adam's hands, and fired several pulses, all absorbed into the blade. "Everyone, stay back!" he called, as he charged the Reaper-Grimm. The creature tried to smack him with its trunk, but to no avail, as he came, and slashed. The sword swept through the Reaper-Grimm's legs, the creature roaring in pain...as it dissolved into wilting petals, likely having been damaged enough as to where Adam's attack would work. "Good..." he groaned, "That took everything I had..."

The other 7 in the group approached the weakened Faunus. "You spent all your energy..." Raiden said plainly.

"Those guys are my new team, I SHOULD be trying to help them survive. You guys were my objective, so I had to ensure you survived to."

Raiden smirked at the Faunus. "Maybe you're not as bad as I thought," he said, as he and Naomi helped him up.

"Let's get moving: the Reapers will likely be coming to see what happened to their powerhouse..." Maxivius stated.

As the group left, Tabitha suddenly began staring at Reviane. "Uhm...what is it?"

"Weapon. Used by attackers," Tabitha stated.

Percival then looked at Reviane's Harrier. "She's right: that's one of the guns our attackers used."

"This weapon I stole from a Cerberus base. How would...Oh no..."

"What is it, Reviane?" Maxivius asked.

"The attackers that drive Team RPTR into Emerald Forest in the first place: some were White Fang, confirmed, but others wore unknown white and gold armor, and, based on Tabitha's and Percival's claims, used Cerberus weapons. Which means..."

Maxivius gave the Turian equivalent of a scowl, "Cerberus is here, and working with the White Fang...but why? Their objectives are vastly different: The White Fang desires Faunus superiority-"

"Faunus Equality," Adam corrected, before muttering, "Although the practices to achieving it are all wrong..."

"-and Cerberus desire Human superiority. Wouldn't those clash?"

"Wouldn't be the first time the White Fang worked with one that had opposing goals..." Adam replied, scowling at the memory of the alliance made with Roman Torchwick.

"We have to get this back to the others!" Maxivius said, "They NEED to know Cerberus is here!"

* * *

"Maxivius Sylmus, Adam Taurus, Reviane Besus, and the reinstated Naomi Delacroix. The four of you successfully rescued Team RPTR from the Reaper-infected Emerald Forest, so, you are now to be known as Team MARN (A/N: pronounced "Marine"), led by Maxivius Sylmus."

"I will lead my team through the trying times ahead," Maxivius declared.

"And, furthermore, as part of our Anti-Reaper tutoring regime, due to their experience fighting the Reapers, Team RPTR is to be assigned to learn under team MARN, like how RWBY is assigned to REPR, and JNPR is to CTDL. Dismissed."

The students, except for Teams REPR, CTDL, MARN, RWBY, JNPR, and RPTR departed. Once they were alone, Ozpin said, "You said there was something you needed to share with us."

"Yes, and I won't beat around the bush with it, either: the unidentified soldiers that aided the White Fang into driving Team RPTR into Emerald Forest, we've identified as our universe's own White Fang counterpart: the Human-Supremacy Terrorist movement Cerberus."

"CERBERUS IS HERE?!" Tiara roared in rage, before a light patting on the shoulder from Pierson came, calming the enraged N7 engineer down.

"Unfortunately. The armor description does match, and we confirmed identification when Team RPTR identified the weapons used by Reviane as the same as those used by the attackers. And we ALL know how Reviane loves using stolen Cerberus tech."

Drosk laughed. "Looks like your obsession with stealing Cerberus tech finally paid off." The Asari Commando scowled at the Batarian.

"Still," Goodwitch asked, "What does this mean for us?"

Retribution answered, "It means things are getting a LOT more interesting..."

* * *

**Well, that's it for the chapter. Debriefing next chapter.  
**

**Now, firstly, for the move Naomi used for her Landing Strategy, basically imagine a variation of "Force Repulse" from Star Wars: The Force Unleashed.**

**Secondly, those of you who could guess who I based Tabitha off gets a cookie (even though people who have seen the series in question may find it plainly obvious)...**

**Next, I'm pretty sure you guys that follow my other stories know where Percival and Raiden respectively come from. *Snickers***

**As for Rena...I wasn't even trying to hide her: you can tell she's an homage to the Elsword character of the same name...The reason I made her a Faunus was to find an excuse to give her the Elf ears...I settled for making her a Dragonfly Faunus with the points on the ears being exoskeletal or chitinous growths of some kind. Her last name, since she's a Dragonfly Faunus in this story, comes from a group of species of Dragonfly called the "Sanddragons".**


End file.
